Death by Cop 2021-2025
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Michael Mills
Age : 36
Gender : Male
Race : White
Date : 08/15/2022
Location : South Hill Rd
City : Ludlow
County : Windsor
State : Vermont
Agency : Ludlow Police Department
Officer(s) :Zachary Paul
Cause of Death : Gunshot
Event : Killed by police during mental health crisis
OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :
On 08/15/2022, Ludlow Police Department officers responded after 35-year-old Michael Mills of Cavendish repeatedly called 911 making suicidal statements and reporting that he was armed. According to the Vermont Attorney General's investigation, Mills made 28 calls to police throughout the evening and drove erratically, creating safety concerns for emergency responders and the public.
Police located Mills driving in Ludlow and attempted to stop his vehicle. Mills continued driving away while police pursued. During the pursuit, Mills rammed a Ludlow police cruiser before losing control and crashing into a tree on South Hill Road. Officers surrounded the disabled vehicle and repeatedly ordered Mills to exit.
Officer Zachary Paul, a 21-year-old officer who had graduated from the Vermont Police Academy the previous month and was working under field training with Cpl. Jeffrey Warfle, confronted Mills after the crash. Investigators reported that Mills remained in the driver's seat with a handgun on his lap. After several minutes of commands and attempted de-escalation, Mills moved the handgun toward Officer Paul. Paul fired one round, striking Mills in the head. Mills was transported to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire, where he remained hospitalized until dying from his injuries on 08/24/2022. The New Hampshire Chief Medical Examiner ruled the cause of death to be a gunshot wound to the head and the manner of death homicide, a medical classification that does not determine legal justification.
The Vermont Attorney General's Office and the Orange County State's Attorney conducted independent reviews and concluded that Officer Paul's use of deadly force was objectively reasonable and justified under Vermont law. Prosecutors declined to file criminal charges against Paul, concluding that a reasonable officer in the same circumstances would have believed deadly force was necessary to prevent death or serious bodily injury to himself and his field training officer.
SOURCE LINKS :
https://www.wcax.com/2022/12/22/ludlow-police-officer-cleared-fatal-shooting/
https://www.wcax.com/2022/09/06/cavendish-man-wounded-officer-involved-shooting-dies/
