HE ATTORNEY W. Wesley Nance Courthouse Christopher M. Dolen, Chief Commomealth's Attorney 123 Bast Main Street Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Bedford, VA 24523 Stacey L. Stickney, Depuy 540-886-7628 Lawrence B, Steele Commorsreaith's Attorney Fe 540-586-2483 Jenna Humpries Assistant Commonwealth's Atorneys March 25, 2024 RE; Bedford County Sheriff's Office use of force on February 11, 2024 against Barry Lee Derr On February 11, 2024, there was an incident involving multiple law enforcement agencies spanning three different jurisdictions. The event culminated in the use of deadly force by a Bedford County Sheriffs deputy against Barry Lee Derr. Mr. Derr sustained multiple gunshot wounds but ultimately survived his injuries. Immediately the investigation into the use of force was taken over by the Virginia State Police, upon the invitation of the Sheriff's Office. Special agents from VSP have provided this office with a comprehensive review of the incident itself, to include the build up to the alleged vehicle pursuit and interviews with law enforcement, Mr. Derr, and others. Additionally, all body cameras, in car cameras, and dispatch records were preserved, collected, and reviewed. 1 thank and commend the Virginia State Police for its extensive review of this incident. Based upon the detail of their investigation, a clear and accurate picture of the events of that day are not in question, Because of the extent of the investigation and documentation from participating agencies, there are no lingering factual questions as to what occurred during this event. The same series of events that led to the use of force also culminated in the placing of numerous criminal charges against Mr. Derr. Those charges have not yet been adjudicated and Will likely be pending for an extended period. With those charges, Mr. Derr is entitled to a presumption of innocence. As such, it would be improper to document the factual findings that 1 have made in my review. Ultimately a trier of fact in Mr. Det ‘riminal matters will need to make factual determinations of the events of that day without any undue influence from outside sources such as this opinion letter. Thus, | will not provide a full accounting of the facts of that day to ensure Mr. Derr’s right to fair criminal proceedings. Those facts will be presented during the criminal prosecutions of Mr. Derr while he is represented by counsel, protected by the rules of evidence, and the Constitutional protections of the Confrontation Clause.Thus, this document will only memorialize the procedures followed in this review, the relevant standards of review used for this examination, and my legal findings and conclusions, Since 2021, the use of deadly force by law enforcement is reviewed under the standards outlined by Section 19.2-83.5 of the Code of Virginia. The language of that Code Section is as follows: A. A law-enforcement officer shall not use deadly force against a person unless: 1. The law-enforcement officer reasonably believes that deadly force is immediately necessary to protect the law-enforcement officer or another person, other than the subject of the use of deadly force, from the threat of serious bodily injury or death; 2. If feasible, the law-enforcement officer has provided a warning to the subject of the deadly force that he will use deadly force; 3. The law-enforcement officer's actions are reasonable, given the totality of the circumstances; and 4, All other options have been exhausted or do not reasonably lend themselves to the circumstances, B. In determining if'a law-enforcement officer's use of deadly force is proper, the following factors shall be considered: 1. The reasonableness of the law-enforcement officer's belief and actions from the perspective of a reasonable law-enforcement officer on the scene at the time of the incident; and 2. The totality of the circumstances, including (i) the amount of time available to the law- enforcement officer to make a decision; (ii) whether the subject of the use of deadly force (a) possessed or appeared to possess a deadly weapon and (b) refused to comply with the law- enforcement officer’s lawful order to surrender an object believed to be a deadly weapon prior to the law-enforcement officer using deadly force; (iii) whether the law-enforcement officer engaged in de-escalation measures prior to the use of deadly force, including taking cover, waiting for backup, trying to calm the subject prior to the use of force, or using non-deadly force prior to the use of deadly force; (iv) whether any conduct by the law-enforcement officer prior to the use of deadly force intentionally increased the risk of a confrontation resulting in deadly force being used; and (v) the seriousness of the suspected rime, Consequently, the evidence compiled by the Virginia State Police is reviewed through the standards of review, and factors to be considered, as outlined in this statute. In doing so, I find that the sheriff's deputy who fired his service weapon reasonably believed that deadly foree ‘was immediately necessary to protect himself or other law enforcement officers. 1 find that he provided warming to the subject of the deadly force, that deadly force would be used | further find that the deputy’s actions were reasonable, given all of the circumstances and the facts that he was confionted with, and the situation did not lend itself to other, less deadly, options.Additionally, all the factors in Section B of the statute were considered and applied to the situation and facts facing the deputy. Those findings will not be detailed at this time due to the pending criminal charges as referenced earlier. Consequently, | find and determine that the use of force by the deputy with the Bedford County Sheriff's Office to be appropriate and necessary based upon the totality of the circumstances that he was confronted with. Consequently, there will be no criminal charges filed against law enforcement officers for their actions taken against Barry Lee Derr on February 11, 2024. Ethical obligations for all prosecutors require that I not further discuss the details of this, incident until Mr. Dert’s criminal matters reach a resolution, At that time I will gladly weleome any questions about both my factual findings and how I applied those findings to the relevant statutory factors Comntnwealth’s Attorney Bedford County