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SALT LAKE CITY — "I knew what happened that day. I knew I was justified."
A relieved, and presumably emotionally-drained Shaun Cowley tilted his head back while sitting next to his attorneys and blankly stared at the ceiling after a judge dismissed the manslaughter charge filed against him.
For the first time in almost two years, Cowley could walk out of a courtroom knowing that he no longer looking at possibly spending 15 years in prison.
"The last two years have taken a toll on my life and my family that people cannot understand. I have seen how people form hateful opinions without knowing of the facts of the case. I've been forced to watch the media as they've reported false truths and occasionally downright lies. The media has crucified me in a non-stop manner just for ratings and a better story," Cowley said.
"I've stated all along … the evidence would show I'd be acquitted. Feels good."
In an extremely rare move, 3rd District Judge L.A. Dever dismissed the criminal case against Cowley. He had been charged with manslaughter for shooting and killing Danielle Willard, 21, during an undercover drug operation in 2012.
During a preliminary hearing, prosecutors only have to meet a low "probable cause" standard to convince a judge that there is enough evidence to show that a crime occurred and that it was committed by the defendant. In most cases, that standard is met and a trial is ordered when a jury weighs a higher standard of "beyond a reasonable doubt."
But in this case, Dever said it was the state's own expert witnesses that caused him to reach the unusual decision that the "probable cause" standard was not met.
"The state's primary expert testified that the defendant could assume that Ms. Willard was attempting to kill (Cowley) and that deadly force was the appropriate response," Dever wrote in his decision. "No evidence has been presented to establish that the conduct was not legally justifiable."
The state's primary expert testified that the defendant could assume that Ms. Willard was attempting to kill (Cowley) and that deadly force was the appropriate response.
–L.A. Dever
After a two-year investigation, the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office had determined that both Cowley and fellow West Valley police detective Kevin Salmon's shooting of Willard was not legally justified. Only Cowley, however, was charged because his shot killed Willard.
"We certainly don’t agree with it but we respect the process of our judicial system, even if it sometimes produces results that we may not agree with," Gill said of the judge's ruling. "We’ve always said that we need to respect the process."
Willard's mother, Melissa Kennedy, who sat on the front row of courtroom behind prosecutors for the entire three-day preliminary hearing, left the Matheson Courthouse without comment.
Additional details will be posted throughout the afternoon.
Contributing: Mike Anderson
