A prosecutors review of the police shooting that killed Hofstra student Andrea Rebello and the ex-convict who allegedly took her hostage during a May 2013 home invasion has concluded the police officer who fired the fatal shots wont face criminal charges. The 28-page report from Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rices office follows a review of whether police personnel acted lawfully during the deadly confrontation. It also gives new details about the incident from the point of view of witnesses who were inside the house. This investigation has determined that a criminal prosecution of Officer Budimlic is not warranted, the report says of Nikolas Budimlic, also offering the first official confirmation of the identity of the Nassau County police officer who fired the shots. Officer Budimlic reasonably perceived threats of deadly force against himself and others and acted accordingly, the report concludes later. Though the results were unquestionably tragic, criminal charges under these circumstances would be inappropriate and legally unsustainable. Rebellos family previously filed notice that they plan to sue the county and its police force for wrongfully causing the 21-year-old students death. On Wednesday, they released a comment through their attorney, David Roth, saying they had hoped a grand jury would have considered the evidence before a decision about criminal charges was made. We are disappointed that they did not put all of the evidence in front of a grand jury and let the grand jury decide, the family said. Roth said he found what seemed to be discrepancies within the report that needed to be analyzed further. But the most glaring issue that we see is Budimlics account in this report conflicts with the Police Departments accounts of what happened immediately after the incident, he said. Roth pointed to the part of the report where the officer described first opening fire with two bullets after the hostage-taker pointed his gun at Rebellos head. Roth said that in the aftermath of the fatal shooting, a police official said that the officer opened fire after the suspect pointed a gun at the officer. Here, hes saying a gun is pointed at Andrea when he shoots. The day after, police said the gun was pointed at police when he shot, Roth said. However, the report also says that the suspect was attempting to aim his gun at Budimlic before Budimlic fired the next four of a total eight gunshots. It also says that before any shooting started, the suspect had held Rebello in a headlock, used her as a human shield, and continued to point the gun alternately at Rebellos head and at the officer. On Wednesday, Nassau police spokesman Insp. Kenneth Lack referred a request for comment to county officials, citing civil litigation in the case. He wouldnt say whether any police probes into the incident were still open. County spokesman Brian Nevin declined to comment, also citing civil litigation. Police Benevolent Association President James Carver said Wednesday that Budimlic didnt cause Rebellos death. If not for Officer Budimlics actions, other people in that house could have died, he said, adding: Police officers must make split-second decisions and dont have the luxury of sitting back and waiting. Carver said the officer is currently working in an administrative role at the police agencys headquarters, backing up police patrols. He said no protocol changes have been made to the departments policies as a result of the deadly shooting. Authorities previously have said the May 17 incident began when an armed gunman barged into the off-campus rental home in Uniondale that Rebello shared with her twin sister and others, taking four students hostage while demanding cash and valuables. Police have said an officer responding to a 911 call opened fire after confronting a suspect they identified as parolee Dalton Smith, a 30-year-old Hempstead ex-convict. Smith was holding Rebello in a headlock while putting a gun to her head, according to authorities, who said previously that the officer pulled the trigger after Smith then pointed the gun at him. Seven bullets hit Smith and one hit Rebello, both of whom died as a result, according to authorities. Late last year, a police source told Newsday that the Nassau County Police Departments deadly force investigators found Budimlic was justified in shooting both Rebello and Smith. The police agency hasnt made any findings public. The Rebello family first raised questions about the shooting shortly after it happened. Theyve also sought access to all records related to the students death in other State Supreme Court filings while preparing to file their civil action. Since then, their attorney has accused Nassau officials of hiding behind legal exemptions -- including by saying the homicide investigation is ongoing -- to avoid public accountability. However, Nassau officials have said theyve complied with requests for records that arent exempt from disclosure by law. They argued in a January court filing that Rebellos family already has access to a lot of evidence and more disclosures would interfere with the police probe.
Posted on: Wed, 02 Apr 2014 21:02:18 +0000
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