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A Salt Lake City police officer who shot and critically injured a juvenile driving a stolen car in May was not justified in his use of deadly force, the Salt Lake County district attorney said Thursday.

After completing what he called "one of the most thorough investigations that we've ever done," District Attorney Sim Gill has determined Officer Matthew Giles' life was not in danger May 8 when he fired at least eight rounds at a stolen car the juvenile was driving. The District Attorney's Office will now conduct a review to see if Giles might face criminal charges.

"It's never an easy process, but it's a responsibility that the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office takes very seriously," Gill said of the investigation. "The use of deadly force in our community, if we don't take it seriously, we will never have the trust of the community."

Early on the morning of May 8, police were alerted to a hit-and-run crash involving a stolen car near 500 West and 400 South. The car was found abandoned a short time later at the Sherwood Forest trailer park, near 1600 West and 400 South.

There, the suspected thief stole another car as police officers surrounded the park, according to a District Attorney's Office report. Giles, one of the officers who was helping with containment, grabbed a .223 rifle from his patrol car and took up a spot near the trailer park's exit.

Over the radio, Giles had heard another officer say that the suspected thief had "rammed" his police cruiser. In an interview quoted in the D.A.'s report, Giles said he "felt the rifle had more stopping power" if the driver were to try to hit him as well.

The juvenile thief stole another car and made two loops around the park before trying to exit. Giles told a sergeant the car was going fast, "directly at me," and was about 20 feet away when he fired two quick shots and then two more when the car did not stop.

"I was trying to stop the action. I was trying to stop the person," Giles told the sergeant, according to the D.A.'s report. "I wasn't tryin' to do the quote, unquote Hollywood shoot the tire out."

Investigators found eight spent rifle casings at the scene. One shot hit the juvenile, whose age Gill declined to release, in the arm and torso.

One shot hit the hood of a pursuing officer's vehicle and, according to the report, the last shot was likely fired after the driver had passed Giles.

After a lengthy review, the district attorney determined the car was probably at least 60 feet — and possibly as many as 100 feet — away from Giles when he started shooting or the driver was going much slower than witnesses said.

"Given the likely location of [the car] when Officer Giles began firing, Officer Giles' ostensible belief that deadly force was necessary to prevent his death or serious bodily injury was not reasonable, and therefore his use of deadly force was not justified," the D.A.'s report stated.

Giles was placed on paid, administrative leave after the shooting, per department protocol. Giles declined to comment Thursday.

"No use-of-force situation is more closely reviewed by this Police Department than an officer-involved shooting. It is with great concern for the well-being of the community and the good faith reputation of the law enforcement profession that a meticulous investigation is undertaken each and every time an officer discharges a weapon in the course of his or her duties," Salt Lake Police Chief Chris Burbank said in a statement Thursday. "The Police Department will now conduct an internal review of the officer's actions. Officer Giles is entitled to the rights afforded him under due process as this investigation is completed."

Giles is the seventh officer-involved shooting Gill has ruled on since taking office in January.

The six other cases were ruled justified by his office.

Dispositions of three other officer-involved shooting cases, including the Thursday night shooting of a Magna man, are pending. —

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