DA's office: No charges to be filed in police-involved shooting of Josh Vigil

No charges will be filed for the police officers involved in a deadly shooting over the summer.

The 4th Judicial District Attorney's Office announced its findings Monday, saying that after a months-long investigation it had concluded the officers were acting within their rights when they shot 38-year-old Joshua Vigil on July 23, 2019.

Colorado law states an officer is justified in using deadly force under the following circumstances:

- To defend himself or a third person from what he reasonably believes to be the use or imminent use of deadly physical force.

- To effect an arrest, or to prevent the escape from custody, of a person whom he reasonably believes has committed or attempted to commit a felony involving the use or threatened use of a deadly weapon.

during a confrontation with police at an apartment complex near Chelton and Fountain in southeast Colorado Springs. Police said the incident started with officers responding to reports of a man with a gun walking around Monterey Park; they located the individual but did not follow him when he fled the area. Officers reportedly found him later after he crashed near the apartment complex and ran into the foyer. According to their account, Vigil aimed a gun at them and the officers fired back.

says the officers shot a Vigil through a glass wall, hitting him 20 times.

The family told 11 News they were at the park with Vigil when officers showed up and told police after he fled that he was going through a mental episode and needed help. They questioned why officers used force instead.

The district attorney's office said it ruled the shooting justified because both officers were in a situation where they believed they were in danger; however, the office said it was troubled by a statement one of the officers made during the incident, which was caught on his body camera. The below is an excerpt from the DA office's report:

Vigil's mother told 11 News reporter Danielle Kreutter that this was not the conclusion she hoped the district attorney would reach.

She said she was angry and believed her son was murdered.