House of Charity shooting ruled justified

A fatal shooting near the House of Charity involving a Spokane police officer was justified, the Spokane County prosecutor has ruled.

Police were called to the intersection of Pacific Avenue and State Street on April 28 after Michael S. Kurtz called 911 and said he had a knife and wanted to kill himself and police. Several officers arrived and tried to talk Kurtz into dropping the knife.

Police and witnesses said Kurtz refused commands to drop the knife and walked toward officers, yelling at them to kill him. An officer on scene used a Taser on Kurtz but it apparently had no effect. Officers Ryan Akins and Brandon Lynch fired on Kurtz as he continued to advance. The incident was recorded on body camera.

Under those circumstances it was reasonable for officers to use deadly force, said a news release from the prosecutor’s office.