NILES - The three officers involved in the shooting death of a burglar coming out of a Old Forge Road home were cleared of any wrongdoing by an independent investigation of the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation and the Trumbull County Prosecutor's office.
Police officers Dan Myers, Thomas Townley and Mark Thou at about 9:43 p.m. April 16 responded to a burglary call at 1773 Old Forge Road, according to the investigative report released on Wednesday.
Thou, moving in front of the house, noticed that the burglar inside had a handgun and warned his fellow officers. The burglar, later identified as Daryl Boggs, 49, 425 Fenton St., came out of the rear of the house with the gun still in his hands, according to the report.
Officers repeatedly ordered Boggs to drop his weapon and get on the ground. The commands were clearly heard by a neighbor and on the police radio, the report states.
As Boggs walked toward the back gate and Myers, he raised his gun and fired in the officer's direction, the report states. The round from the gun struck a house at 116 Moreland Road, directly behind 1773 Old Forge Road.
The three officers returned fire.
Boggs was shot three times and suffered four gunshot wounds, due to the fact that one bullet went in and out a second time.
All three officers were immediately separated, questioned and tested for drugs and alcohol, according to the report. They all tested negative for drugs and alcohol.
The Boggs family, which has seen the BCI report, chose not to comment on Wednesday. Shannon Boggs, his daughter, at the time of the shooting questioned why the officers had to shoot to kill her father.
An investigation of Boggs' criminal background showed he had been sentenced to four to 15 years in prison for aggravated burglary in 1981, six months in prison for escape in Trumbull County Common Pleas Court in 1995, two to 10 years in prison for attempted burglary in 1995, and eight months in prison for receiving stolen property in 2004. He also had a 30 month federal conviction in 2005 for conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine.
Forensic testing revealed that the gloves Boggs was wearing were positive for gunshot primer. An autopsy revealed that Boggs tested positive for alcohol, cocaine and Tramadol.
The investigation of the burglary showed that Boggs entered the home by pushing in a window air conditioner on the back porch and then broke the window of the rear door. He ransacked the home.
The .25-caliber semi-automatic handgun that Boggs fired was taken from inside the home, the report states.
The three officers at first were placed on paid administrative leave, then assigned to duties inside the department. Last week, they returned to street patrols and other duties, Ken Criswell, the Niles police spokesman, said.