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COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho (AP) — A northern Idaho man is being held over for trial in the shooting death of a Coeur d'Alene police officer.
First District Senior Magistrate Barry Watson ruled Wednesday that there was enough evidence to take Jonathan Daniel Renfro, 27, to trial on charges including first-degree murder, The Spokesman Review reported (http://bit.ly/1JPQ3NA).
Sgt. Greg Moore's body camera recorded him stopping Renfro in May, and it shows the shooting as well, prosecutors said. "That evidence is compelling and powerful to establish it was the defendant who shot Sgt. Moore," Kootenai County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney David Robins told Watson.
Moore was checking on a suspicious person while patrolling a neighborhood when he was gunned down, court documents say. He died later that evening.
"Renfro is observed shooting Sgt. Moore," Idaho State Police Senior Detective Michael A. Van Leuven wrote in an affidavit that describes images from the camera worn by Moore. "After being shot, Sgt. Moore falls to the ground, causing his body camera to point skyward. A short time later, Renfro's face comes back into the frame. Renfro is seen using a flashlight while searching Sgt. Moore's person."
Renfro waived Miranda rights after he was arrested and talked about the shooting, police said. Robins said. Renfro told authorities he shot Moore because he didn't want the officer to find the gun in his pocket. Renfro in court documents said he told investigators he didn't want to go back to prison on a parole violation for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
"That's his motive, your honor," Robins said.
Kootenai County Public Defender John Adams argued Moore had no reason to stop Renfro, and that Renfro was walking down the sidewalk dressed appropriately for the weather and time of day.
"He's got to have something more than that," Adams said of Moore's reason for the stop. "In America you can walk down the street at 1:30 in the morning without being accosted by the police."
Renfro is being held on a $2 million bond and has not entered a plea.
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