The Bronx District Attorney's Office has officially ruled the police shooting of Luis Manuel Monsanto, an 18-year-old shot by NYPD officers during a vehicle confrontation in Morrisania over three years ago, as a legally justified action, citing the circumstances that unfolded during the March 6, 2022 incident. According to a report released by Bronx DA Darcel D. Clark, alongside body-camera footage, the conclusion was reached after an exhaustive investigation into the event that resulted in Mr. Monsanto suffering irreversible injuries. The report, available to the public, details the findings that underpin this determination.
The incident in question occurred near Boston Road and East 165th Street, where Mr. Monsanto was shot in the head when a Jeep he was driving moved toward a police officer during a traffic stop. The DA's office states, as captured on video and body-worn camera, that the officer, and a second officer at the scene acted in what they deemed necessary defense when collectively discharging four bullets. Despite this, the calamity of the event does not escape the District Attorney: “I pray for Mr. Monsanto, and I am sorry his loved ones must endure such hardship. This devastating tragedy demanded a thorough investigation to provide answers to his family and to the Bronx community at large," said Clark in a statement obtained by the Bronx DA's office.
The justification for the officers' actions hinges on the legal interpretation of their response to an imminent threat. The finding was grounded in a close examination of New York's justification laws, which permit the use of deadly force when an officer believes it necessary to defend themselves or a third party from what they perceive as an imminent threat of deadly force or serious physical injury. The decision not to press criminal charges against the involved officers comes after reviewing the video evidence and extensive witness interviews which supported the officers' accounts of the incident.
"This devastating tragedy demanded a thorough investigation to provide answers to his family, and to the Bronx community at large," Clark continued in a statement. Full details of the DA's findings and the justification for the ruling can be accessed through the provided link to the DA's office's report.
