Lewis County Sirens.com

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office announced this afternoon that its internal investigation confirmed Deputy Matt McKnight acted within the law and did not deviate from office policy, procedure and training when he fatally shot a 33-year-old man in Napavine the week before last.

Deputies were assisting Napavine police with a dispute early on June 20 when McKnight was confronted by a volatile suspect; the result was McKnight shot Steven V. Petersen who died at the scene, the sheriff’s office said today in a news release.

A team of officers from outside sheriff’s offices conducted the shooting investigation. Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer’s review of their findings concluded last week the deputy’s use of deadly force was justified.

Sheriff’s Steve Mansfield’s office conducted an  internal investigation that included a “shooting review board”.

McKnight is cleared to return to normal patrol duties next week, according to the sheriff’s office. The 27-year-old  has worked with the sheriff’s office a little more than four years.

Sheriff Mansfield said in the news release it’s an unfortunate reality that law enforcement must at times resort to the use of deadly force to protect themselves and others during volatile situations.

“This incident, while tragic for so many reasons, drives home the reality of the dangers of this profession and the importance of how we conduct ourselves and what we do each and every day to achieve our mission and protect those we serve,” Mansfield stated.

It was about 2 a.m. after a man had apparently stabbed the front door of a home on West Washington Street when McKnight confronted Petersen several blocks away.

Meyer wrote in his findings that Petersen wouldn’t take his hand out of pocket, ignored verbal commands and began to advance on the deputy when the deputy fired four shots. No knife was found in the pocket or anywhere else, according to Meyer.

Petersen died of a gunshot wound to the head.
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Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter

This entry was posted on Friday, July 8th, 2011 at 7:32 pm and is filed under News briefs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.