Saint Paul Officers Cleared In Fatal 2024 Shooting Of Homicide Suspect
BY MN CRIME STAFF
A Ramsey County review has determined that two Saint Paul police officers were legally justified in the fatal shooting of a man wanted in connection with a double homicide and carjacking.
In a decision memo dated Dec. 12, the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office concluded that Officers Matthew Foy and Eric Jaworski acted lawfully when they shot Mychel Allan Stowers, 36, during an encounter on Nov. 9, 2024.
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The decision followed a Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension investigation into the use of deadly force.
Police were dispatched to the area after an anonymous 911 caller reported seeing Stowers inside the Quick Wash Laundromat at 1148 West Seventh Street. The caller said she recognized him from news reports identifying him as the wanted man in the Oct. 19, 2024 shooting deaths of his pregnant girlfriend and her unborn child. Investigators say Stowers was also accused of shooting and wounding a man during a carjacking shortly after the homicide.
PREVIOUSLY: Police Fatally Shoot Homicide Suspect Outside Saint Paul Laundromat
Officers staged nearby and were briefed that Stowers was considered armed and dangerous, that the murder weapon had not been recovered, and that he had recently been released on parole after serving time for a 2008 murder conviction. When officers learned Stowers had left the laundromat on a bicycle and was moving into a residential area, they moved in to make contact.
Officers Foy and Jaworski located Stowers riding on Bay Street about a block south of West Seventh Street. Investigators say that as their marked squad car approached, Stowers stopped, pulled a handgun from his waistband, and pointed it at the officers. Squad video shows Stowers gripping the gun with both hands and aiming toward the vehicle.
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Officer Jaworski fired multiple rounds from a rifle through the squad’s windshield. As Stowers turned and fell, Officer Foy exited the vehicle and fired several shots from his handgun. Witnesses in the area reported seeing Stowers point a gun and fire before officers returned fire.
Stowers fell to the ground with his gun beneath him. Officers secured the scene and provided medical aid before he was taken to Regions Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy determined he died from multiple gunshot wounds, including a fatal head wound.
A 9mm handgun was recovered near Stowers, and DNA testing showed he was the major contributor to DNA found on the weapon. Ballistics testing showed Officer Jaworski fired six rifle rounds and Officer Foy fired four handgun rounds.
In its analysis, the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office concluded a reasonable officer would have believed Stowers posed an imminent threat of death or great bodily harm. Prosecutors determined the officers’ use of deadly force was justified under Minnesota law and declined to file charges.
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