ST PAUL, Minn. — An officer with the South Lake Police Department fired multiple shots after a woman pointed a BB gun at him while she was trying to flee police, according to officials.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) released new information on Tuesday detailing what led up to an officer firing their weapon during a pursuit. Among the new details released by the BCA was the identity of the officer — Zachary Robertson, who has 18 years of law enforcement experience. According to the release, Robertson is on standard administrative leave.
The woman involved was 33-year-old Amanda Nelson, who was charged last week with two counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle in connection with the incident. Nelson is also charged with one count of fugitive from justice from another state, stemming from an arrest warrant previously filed in Illinois.
According to the criminal complaint, Nelson first got on police radar in the city of Excelsior, when a South Lake Minnetonka police officer ran her vehicle's plates. The complaint said the officer, later identified as Robertson, learned Nelson was wanted on an active warrant for a handful of charges, including aggravated battery, in the state of Illinois.
The BCA said Robertson attempted to pull over Nelson, but she didn't stop and a pursuit began. Another officer joined the pursuit and used a pit maneuver to stop Nelson near the North Coop Restaurant in Excelsior. According to the BCA, an officer saw Nelson had a gun and alerted Robertson and dispatch over the radio. Robertson pulled his squad in front of Nelson's vehicle to prevent her from driving off, and that's when the BCA said Nelson pointed a gun at Robertson.
Court documents say Nelson pointed a black handgun through the driver's side window, and footage from one of the officer's body-worn cameras captured him yelling "Gun, gun, gun! She's got a gun!"
The BCA said Robertson fired "multiple times" through his windshield, adding that Nelson wasn't injured and eventually drove away from the scene. Court documents say Robertson fired five shots before Nelson drove away.
Officers continued their pursuit, and eventually stopped Nelson's vehicle with a pit maneuver near Highways 41 and 5, according to the BCA. After an almost four-and-a-half-hour standoff, prosecutors said Nelson was finally removed from her vehicle by law enforcement and taken into custody.
The BCA said a black Smith & Wesson BB gun air pistol was found in Nelson's car. BCA agents are still reviewing both body camera footage as well as squad car footage of the incident.
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