Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett said Monday that no charges will be filed a Goddard police officer who shot and killed a man in a confrontation last February.
The officer tried to stop 39-year-old Michael Trask, who lived near Lake Afton, for traffic violations, and Trask’s vehicle came to a stop near 63rd Street South and 183rd Street West. Trask got out of the vehicle and walked toward the officer, and he appeared to be holding a black, semiautomatic handgun. He refused commands from the officer and continued to walk toward the officer.
Bennett said the officer believed that he was going to be shot by Trask, so he fired eight times, hitting Trask twice. The gun that Trask was carrying turned out to be a BB gun.
Bennett said under Kansas law, the officer is immune from prosecution. He said state law allows someone to use deadly force if it is reasonably believed to be necessary to protect himself or another.
[ photo is from a dash camera showing Michael Trask walking toward the Goddard police officer’s vehicle ]
