Providence Place Mall: Grand Jury Says Police Shootings Justified

PROVIDENCE, RI — The Grand Jury has decided the troopers and Providence police officers who killed Joseph Santos and wounded Christine Demers acted lawfully, according to state Attorney General Peter Kilmartin. The shooting happened Nov. 9, 2017 on an I-95 ramp near the Providence Place mall. It ended a chaotic morning that started when a state police prisoner Donald Morgan, 35, stole a cruiser after the Trooper stepped outside to attend to accident victims on Route 146. Morgan, who was being taken to court, was left alone handcuffed in the cruiser. He managed to pull himself into the driver's seat and take off. Providence police later found the car in South Providence, but Morgan had fled. During the search, police heard the white truck, which Santos was driving, might be connected. After a chase, Santos, who was in traffic on the ramp, rammed nearby cars, and police opened fire. However, Morgan was not found in the truck after state police descended on it. Santos was killed. Demers his passenger. Morgan was captured the next day in Cumberland.

Here is the statement.

The Providence County Grand Jury has completed its investigation into the facts and circumstances surrounding the fatal shooting of Joseph Santos and the non-fatal shooting of Christine Demers by members of the Rhode Island State Police and the Providence Police on November 9, 2017, and has determined that the actions by the Troopers and Officers were lawful and legally justified.

The names of the Troopers and Officers involved:

Rhode Island State Police

Lieutenant Cynthia Trahan

Corporal Scott Carlsten

Corporal Herbert Tilson

Trooper Garrett Hassett

Providence Police Officers

Major Oscar Perez

Sergeant Gregory Paolo

Officer Matthew McGloin

Officer Thomas Zincone

Officer Christopher Ziroli

State police said Col. Ann C. Assumpico issued a statement saying state police believe the decision was correct.

“The men and women of the Rhode Island State Police and the Providence Police Department did what they are trained to do – to protect the lives of innocent people who were in imminent danger that day," she said.

Photo Caption: In this Thursday, Nov. 9, 2017 still image from an officer's body camera released by the Providence Police Department, officers converge on a truck driven into another vehicle by Joseph Santos. Courtesy Providence Police via AP