Two Springville police officers have been cleared in the fatal shooting of 28-year-old Donald Bradley, who prosecutors say stabbed one of them in the shoulder and then lunged at him with a knife during what began as a routine domestic dispute call. The Utah County Attorney's Office ruled that Officers Larry Bernal and Andrew Monney were legally justified in shooting Bradley on April 5, 2025, after he attacked Bernal moments after officers arrived at his mother's home.
According to a final report from the Utah County Attorney's Office relayed by KSL.com, Bernal and Monney responded to the area of 200 South and 300 West in Springville after neighbors called 911 to report a domestic dispute between Bradley and his mother. The confrontation had started over Bradley's drinking, after his mother took away beer he had purchased to keep him from drinking more. Officers arrived to find Bradley had punched his mother repeatedly in the head with closed fists and put her in a chokehold, though she told officers at the scene that she did not want to press charges.
A Knife Appears the Moment the Door Opens
When officers opened the residence door to speak with Bradley, he dropped a coat draped over his arm and grabbed a knife, stabbing Bernal in the left shoulder, the report states. Bernal grabbed Bradley by the left arm, and Bradley pulled away and raised the knife in an attack position while yelling, “Shoot me! Shoot me!” Prosecutors say the shooting unfolded within a matter of seconds, and that the officers did not immediately draw their weapons after Bradley stabbed Bernal.
Bradley lunged at Bernal, and the report indicates Monney and Bernal fired to protect themselves after Bradley raised the knife to attack again. Officers fired a total of 11 shots at Bradley, with Monney firing an additional shot after Bradley moved his left arm forward. The gunfire hit Bradley with five shots, three of which were lethal, and Bradley was fatally wounded. Bernal was treated at a local hospital for his stab wound and later released.
The Legal Standard Behind the Clearance
Prosecutors evaluated the officers' actions against standards concerning reasonable force and imminent threats, according to a use-of-force document published by the City of Provo. The Utah County Attorney's Office reviewed the case.
The report contains prosecutors' analysis of the officers' use of force.
Not the First Knife Confrontation for Springville Police
This is not the first time Springville officers have faced a knife-wielding suspect. In June 2022, Springville police fatally shot a knife-wielding man outside a local Walmart Supercenter after the suspect crashed into a patrol vehicle and threatened an officer with a knife, according to Gephardt Daily.
The case also lands amid a broader discussion of police shootings. A report by Campaign Zero, referenced by KUTV 2News, described a slight national decline in police killings. Utah homicides are also part of the broader discussion. Nationally, FBI LEOKA data for 2025 showed 53 law enforcement officers were feloniously killed in the line of duty, down from 64 the year before, per the FBI Crime Data Explorer. Separately, data compiled by EveryStat and updated in March 2026 shows homicides—including fatal shootings by police—account for 14% of gun-related deaths in Utah, while gun suicides make up 83%.
