MEDFORD, Ore. — The two officers involved in last week’s deadly officer involved shooting in Eagle Point are scheduled to be interviewed by investigators tomorrow.
A grand jury is expected to begin reviewing the case sometime in the next couple weeks.
They’ll be determining whether or not the officers were justified in using deadly force.
District Attorney Beth Heckert says there aren’t any new developments in the officer-involved shooting that took place last week. What we do know is that in the last twenty years in Jackson County, officer-involved shooting cases have been reviewed by a grand jury.
In other counties, that decision’s sometimes left to the District Attorney.
“We’re just following our protocol that we use each and every time on how we deal with these cases…,” said Beth Heckert, Jackson County District Attorney.
District Attorney Beth Heckert is handling last week’s officer-involved shooting in Eagle Point. The incident happened last Wednesday night at Carl’s Junior.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office says 33-year-old, Matthew Thayer Graves, was not complying with police.
“Both officers struggled with the suspect and had difficulty taking him into custody,” said Captain Tim Snaith, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators say Eagle Point Police used a taser and at some point; Graves was shot.
In the next few weeks, the case will be reviewed by a grand jury. They’ll determine whether the use of deadly force was justified.
“It really is presenting all the information that we have to a group of seven people in the community and advising them what the law is and they make a decision after all the information they heard…,” said District Attorney Beth Heckert.
Here’s how it works.
Seven Jackson County residents make up the grand jury. It’s a secret proceeding, no one but the D.A., experts, witnesses and the jurors are involved.
The D.A. decides how to present the case.
“If we don’t believe it’s a crime, we don’t present them with charges…,” said District Attorney Beth Heckert. “But we present them with all of the facts and tell them what possible charges could be.”
Sometimes the process is quick. Other times, it could be much longer as every case is different.
“We just want to gather all of the information, present that to the grand jury, advice them of the law, and let them make a decision…,” she said.
The D.A. says she’s still waiting to receive all the information police have gathered from their investigation. The autopsy on Matthew Thayer Graves was completed on Friday, but the officers interviews aren’t until tomorrow.
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