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DA: Unified officer who shot innocent bystander will not be charged

Posted at 11:07 AM, Jun 15, 2016
and last updated 2016-06-15 19:17:11-04

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah --  The Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office will not file criminal charges against Unified Police Department Officer Cory Tsouras who was involved in the 2015 shooting of an innocent bystander.

However, after a full review of the incident, the DA's office could not conclude the use of deadly force was "justified."

On October 30, 2015, wanted suspect Jeremy Bowden fired six shots at Unified Officer Cory Tsouras while Tsouras was in his patrol car.

Police say Officer Tsouras got out of his patrol car to survey the area when Bowden fired more shots at Tsouras.

In the process, Tsouras lost sight of Bowden and saw a man who he incorrectly thought was Bowden, trying to get into the car wash office.

Tsouras shot the innocent man twice, once in the arm and once in the leg, mistaking him for the suspect.

The shot bystander, Dustin Evans, was not the gunman but a civilian trying to find safety from the gunfire near 150 West and 7200 South.