“We just got the case this afternoon. ... At this point we cannot comment on what we have and what we do not have for evidence,” said spokesman Todd Dvorak.
The office’s special prosecutions unit will review the case and determine if the shooting was justified or if criminal charges, such as voluntary or involuntary manslaughter, are warranted against either of the deputies. Dvorak said officials do not know how long that will take.
“We recognize this is an important case that has a lot of public interest,” Dvorak said. “We will only get one chance at this, so we want to be thorough and do our jobs diligently.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is conducting its own inquiry into the shooting for any civil rights violations, including possible excessive use of force.
“We anticipate we will be wrapping up soon on the federal side as well,” said Wendy J. Olson, the U.S. attorney for Idaho.
Olson said she expects to decide “relatively soon.”
