Fatal police shooting of mentally ill man justified

The April shooting death of a mentally ill Chesterfield County man by a county police officer was justifiable, according to a report issued by the multijurisdictional grand jury that looked into his death.

Chesterfield Commonwealth's Attorney William W. Davenport issued a news release saying the grand jury met Thursday to investigate the circumstances of Robert Allen Hansen Jr.'s shooting death outside his home in the 11000 block of Lucks Lane, off Courthouse Road and north of the Powhite Parkway.

The grand jury, which represents the counties of Chesterfield, Dinwiddie and Prince George and the cities of Colonial Heights and Petersburg, reported to Davenport that "We . . . conclude that the shooting of [Hansen] was justified under the surrounding facts and circumstances."

Police went to the Hansen home April 25 after receiving reports that Hansen, 31, was beating his father.

In her 911 call, Hansen's mother, Debi, stressed that her son was mentally ill and very large, weighing in excess of 300 pounds.

When the officers arrived, Robert Hansen was on the porch, talking incoherently and not threatening anyone, Debi Hansen said. At some point, her son approached the officers and tackled one of them as his mother and father tried to pull him away.

The accompanying officer shot the man from close range when her partner ordered her to shoot, according to the family. Debi Hansen said she was kept at gunpoint from her dying son as he called out to her.

Robert Hansen was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1996 and started showing signs of illness at 19. A psychiatrist had recently given him new medicine because he had been depressed, edgy and feeling lonely, his mother said in April.

Reached yesterday, Debi Hansen said her family would not comment until consulting with their lawyer.

Davenport and Chesterfield Police Chief Thierry G. Dupuis declined yesterday to provide a summary of the April 25 incident, answer questions about the investigation or identify the officer who fired the shot. Police have previously disclosed that one officer fired one shot, killing Hansen, during what they described as an aggravated domestic call.

"The Chesterfield County Police Department wishes to reiterate its sympathy for the tragic loss that has been suffered by the Hansen family," Dupuis said in a prepared statement. "At the same time, the department also wishes to express its gratitude for the work and decision of the grand jury and for its support of the police officers' actions.

"In keeping with its long-standing practice, the department will not comment on its internal investigation, which is ongoing," the chief added.

Davenport said the grand jury represents the people of Chesterfield and that the panel has looked at the facts and delivered an independent finding. "That's why you take it to the grand jury and you don't do it yourself, so the people can have their say," Davenport said.

The prosecutor said it would be inappropriate for him to provide an account of the shooting based on information that may be less complete than what was presented to the grand jury.

The grand jurors, he noted, are a "group of citizens in our community who do this thing on a regular kind of basis. They're good at it -- a lot of those people have been on that grand jury for a long time."

"That's the people's body and I think they made their conclusion, and I think going outside of that doesn't do any good for the people of our county," he added. "To throw a set of facts out there, I think it maybe raises more questions than it answers."

Contact Mark Bowes at (804) 649-6450 or .