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Officers who shot man suspected in string of robberies won’t be charged

Jonathan M. Buttrom was surrounded by armored police vehicles Aug. 7 when he made suicidal statements, prosecutors said. The Spokane County Prosecutor's Office said Tuesday that officers who fired at Buttrom were justified. (Courtesy Curt Hoagland)
By Maggie Quinlan maggieq@spokesman.com(509) 459-5135

Attorneys at the Spokane County Prosecutor’s Office believe an August police shooting of a robbery suspect was justified and will not press charges against officers, according to a Spokane County news release.

The shooting victim, Jonathan M. Buttrom, survived his injuries and was arrested five weeks after the shooting, once he had been treated at Sacred Heart Medical Center, according to release and court documents.

In August, Buttrom was suspected in a string of three armed robberies at cellphone stores in Spokane, the release said.

Police surveilled Buttrom’s address Aug. 7 and when he left home around 10:45 p.m. in his white Chrysler 300, they followed him, according to the release.

After an erratic chase, the Chrysler stopped at the intersection of North Crestline Street and East Courtland Avenue, according to the release. Police ordered Buttrom out of the car but he stayed inside and held a handgun to his head, the release said.

Buttrom, in addition to suicidal statements, “made frequent and rapid head movements back and forth inside the car and always had the gun in his hand,” the release said.

“Take a couple deep breaths and relax,” an officer can be heard saying in a video taken by a nearby resident. “We can’t walk up there while you have the gun.”

Shortly after Buttrom told police to “back up” and “I see you,” he lowered the gun from his head and pointed it toward several officers, according to the release.

Two Spokane Police Department officers, Dale Harvey and Christopher Johnson, fired at Buttrom, injuring his upper torso. Curt Hoagland’s video shows Buttrom sliding out of the car. He left his gun in the Chrysler, according to the release.

Hoagland, watching from about 50 feet away, said he thought police tried for a long time to deescalate the situation.

Prosecutors said Harvey and Johnson had “an objective good faith belief in the correctness of his actions and that each was acting pursuant,” to Washington state law, according to the release.

Buttrom told police in an interview he’d “attempted suicide by cop and failed,” the release said.

Buttrom pleaded guilty in October to four counts of first-degree robbery, a kidnapping charge, second-degree assault and illegal possession of a firearm, according to court documents.