LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The City of Las Vegas has been given notice that a lawsuit will be filed in connection to the death of Justin Charland who was shot several times by Las Vegas police outside his home on May 5, 2020.
Police said at the time of the shooting, a 911 call came in about a man, later identified as Charland, who was on the stairs of his apartment yelling and holding a sword.
When police arrived they made contact with Charland and asked him to put down the sword. Officers said he did not and came down the stairs toward them and that is when the shooting happened.
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Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department identified Vincen Segura as the officer involved in the deadly shooting.
Lawyers for the family say the lawsuit is expected to be filed 90 days from the notice.
“The purpose of this claim is to help the city of Las Vegas improve how they respond to mental health crisis calls,” said Christopher Brown, principal attorney of The Brown Firm, PLLC, which is handling the case on behalf of the Charland family. “We need to integrate mental health and crisis intervention into all parts of our emergency response systems in order to prevent future excessive force incidents like Mr. Charland’s death.”
In a Nov. 12, 2020 letter to the county manager, Clark County District Attorney Steven Wolfson wrote in regards Officer Segura, "I am writing to advise you that a preliminary determination has been made by the Clark County District Attorney’s office that no criminal prosecution of the officer or officers involved in the referenced case is appropriate."
We reached out to LVMPD for comment, and they said the department does not comment on pending litigation.
LVMPD BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE (WARNING: Body cam video above may be disturbing to some viewers):
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The Brown Firm says it intends to sue LVMPD Officer Segura and pursue claims against the City of Las Vegas given what they call "the failures of the officers’ training and the lack of appropriate policies and procedures in place to respond to those suffering from a mental health crisis."
