St. Louis Chief Calls for FBI Investigation of Deadly Force Incident

in a rare move, Police Chief Sam Dotson has requested that the FBI review his department’s handling of an officer-involved shooting that killed a 25-year-old man.

A St. Louis Police Department investigation concluded Nov. 15 that officers were justified in killing Cary Ball, 25, after he pointed a .40 caliber Glock at them.

Ball’s relatives insist that, as an educated man with a budding career in social work, he never would have aimed a gun at police. The family has filed a wrongful-death suit seeking unspecified damages from the officers, department and others.

Now, in a rare move, Police Chief Sam Dotson has requested that the FBI review his department’s handling of the case. He also met with Ball’s mother, Toni Taylor, and gave her a copy of the police report.

“Some paths are very clear to me, and with this one, I want to make certain that we are right,” Dotson said in a recent interview with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

About the Author