VIDEO: Denver Police Prohibited from Shooting at Cars
Following reviews sparked by the fatal shooting of teenager Jessica Hernandez, the Denver Police Department is changing its policy about shooting at suspects in moving vehicles.
Hernandez was shot and killed in a moving vehicle in an alleyway near the intersection of 25th and Niagara on the early morning of January 26. Investigators said she was driving a stolen car toward two officers, who opened fire.
Following the shooting, the case was given to the Denver District Attorney's office to review the actions of the officers involved and the police department opened a review of its policy for shooting at vehicles.
Both of those reviews are now complete: Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey decided last week that the officers will not be charged and the police department has altered its rules for shooting at moving vehicles.
The police department's old rule would allow an officer to shoot at a moving vehicle if it posed a threat to themselves or another person and they have no other reasonable course of action.
The new policy states that "firearms shall not be discharged at a moving or fleeing vehicle unless deadly force is being used against the police officer or another person present by means other than a moving vehicle." In other words, there has to be another deadly weapon jeopardizing police officers or civilians besides the moving vehicle, ABC 7 reports.