Another grand jury declines to indict ex-Tucson cop for killing man in wheelchair

Pima County prosecutors once again failed to convince a grand jury to charge former Tucson police officer Ryan Remington — who shot and killed a man in a motorized wheelchair during a confrontation over shoplifting in November 2021. 

In a statement Thursday, Pima County Attorney Laura Conover announced a grand jury declined to indict the former officer in the death of Richard Lee Richards, issuing a “no bill” on Thursday.

Remington was indicted for manslaughter in August 2022 and he pleaded not guilty. However, defense attorneys Mike Storie and Natasha Wrae successfully challenged that indictment, arguing prosecutors presented a report to the grand jury that unintentionally included misleading statements.

 PCAO attempted to convince a second grand jury to charge Remington, but that January 2023 panel was unconvinced and issued a “no bill.” 

Prosecutor Christopher Ward then moved to dismiss the charge against the former officer without prejudice, which would allow the Pima County Attorney’s Office to pursue charges again in the future. 

That attempt collapsed Thursday, and Conover said her office would “close the file, (and) we do not intend to seek further review of the case.” 

Remington was working on a “special duty assignment” on Nov. 29, 2021, as a security guard when he responded to Walmart employees who said Richards, 61, had shoplifted a toolbox, and threatened a worker with a knife. 

Body-worn camera footage, combined with surveillance footage showed Remington followed Richards for several minutes as they wound through the parking lot of several stores before Richards attempted to ride into a Lowe’s store across the street. At one point, Remington warned fellow officer Stephanie Taylor that “he’s got a knife in his other hand.”

As Richards rolled toward the threshold, Remington fired a salvo of shots, followed by one last shot. Richards slumped in the chair of the motorized scooter, and then crumpled to his left, onto the ground.

The next day, former TPD Chief Chris Magnus — who later resigned as chief after being confirmed as the head of U.S. Customs and Border Protection — announced he was firing Remington, a four-year veteran of TPD for violating “multiple aspects” of the department’s use-of-force policy when he shot Richards. Magnus said he was “deeply disturbed and troubled” by Remington’s actions.

“His use of deadly force in this incident was a clear violation of department policy,” Magnus said at the time. “As a result the department moved earlier today to terminate Officer Remington.”

After Magnus left, current TPD Chief Chad Kasmar completed the process of terminating Remington from the force in January 2021. While TPD moved to fire Remington, the Pima County Attorney’s Office began a “deliberative review” of the case, said Conover in a video message released that December.

Following Remington’s indictment, Richards’ family filed a lawsuit, arguing the former police officer’s actions were “excessive, unjustifiable, and unnecessary.”

Richards’ sister told the Tucson Sentinel in January 2023 her brother suffered grievous injuries in 1995 when he worked as a wildland firefighter while serving in the state prison system and fell from a 50-foot cliff, crushing the right side of his body. She added Remington was “not threatened by my brother. I think he snapped and just unloaded his gun.”

Remington’s attorney Storie told the Tucson Sentinel last January his client was in the right in shooting Richards in the back, and argued the “only people who didn’t think he was justified were former esteemed chief Magnus and our mayor. Everyone else felt like he was justified. So, now that they’re not talking, the people have spoken and said it should go away,” Storie said. 

The officer’s defense attorney called Richards “crazy” and “desperate.” “

“He didn’t want to go back to prison, and he had a ton of drugs onboard,” Storie said.

He argued the incident lasted for five minutes, and body-cam footage released by TPD  failed to show the ways in which Richards could have been a threat as he drove his mobility scooter through the parking lot before the incident escalated. Remington, the defense attorney said, was not required to “gamble his life” on whether Richards was stuck in the scooter, and he added that using other options to stop Richards, including the use of a taser or other less-lethal weapons, were “contrary to Remington’s training.”

TPD officials have not provided details about how officers are trained to deal with people in wheelchairs, including motorized scooters, and whether they are informed about the location of “off” switches on mobility devices. Many have power switches readily accessible from the back.

At one point, according to a Walmart employee, Richards said “If you want me to put down the knife, you’re going to have to shoot me,” according to a statement released by TPD in November 2021.

The wheelchair, or mobility scooter, didn’t matter, Storie argued because Richards “could walk and that means he was a threat to get up out of that scooter and cause chaos in that store.”

Storie has moved to protect Remington’s ability to be a police officer in Arizona and the body that certifies police officers has yet to decide on Remington’s case. 

Conover: ‘We respect the decision’ 

In a statement Thursday afternoon, Conover said after the county received a no-bill from a third grand jury, her office “remained committed to obtaining justice for Richard Lee Richards, so the decision was made to re-present the case to another grand jury.”

Conover released a video of herself speaking at a lectern, delivering her own statement, but did not hold a press conference at which she took questions about the case Thursday.

“Before presenting the case to the original grand jury, PCAO conducted a lengthy and thorough investigation,” said the written statement released by her office. “This was done by consulting with a team of veteran prosecutors out of Maricopa County, a nationally renowned use of force expert, and vowing to take the time to carefully review the incident.” 

“We stand by our decision to submit the case for review to the grand juries,” said PCAO. “We respect the decision of the current grand jury to decline the case. PCAO will now close the file.” 

“Our thoughts remain with the victim’s sister, Victoria Richards,” the statement said.

Remington’s attorney Storie said Thursday that he, along with counsel Natasha Wrae, “share in Ryan’s relief and joy that this ordeal has finally come to an end.”

Storie has remained sharply critical of how the case was handled by former TPD Chief Magnus and Tucson Mayor Regina Romero, but praised current Chief Kasmar, saying “I respect the way Chad has handled this case, since he become chief of police.”

“I hope at some point these public officials get held accountable for making premature statement to the citizens of Tucson,” he said.

In the video Thursday, Conover noted that three years have passed since the shooting. She said the process was long, but falls in line with a trend of nationwide high profile officer long shootings or excessive force.” 

“These cases take a very long time to analyze,” she said. She added that a county jury has not ruled over a shooting by a police officer since 1989 and that meant there was “no playbook or manual” for her office to help build a case. 

She said instead, she sought out veteran, former prosecutor out of Maricopa County who took a law enforcement officer to trial, and used John McMahon, a “nationally-renowned use of force expert ” John McMahon. 

McMahon was also central to her office’s review of another high-profile case involving law enforcement, and last December, PCAO declined to pursue action.

In his report, McMahon called Remington’s action “objectively unreasonable and unnecessary.”

Conover said her office engaged in “protracted litigation” over the case, including pursuing the ability to again submit the case to a grand jury. 

“We aren’t here today to rehash what happened before the grand jury and how they decline charges,” Conover said. “Nor am I here to litigate the case in the court of public opinion, because today, the grand jury spoke and declined to file any criminal charges, and unless further information comes to light—which seems quite unexpected—we intend to close the case here.” 

She praised Ward’s efforts to pursue the case and she said the grand jury’s decision follows a nationwide trend, naming several other major cases involving police officers. 

“We are disappointed with this outcome because we believed it was proper to present this case to the grand jury, but we will respect the decision from here on out,” Conover said. 

She closed with a message to Richards’ sister. 

“And last, this is just a message from me to Victoria. This does not diminish your loss. This decision does not diminish the childhood sibling-hood that you enjoyed with him, and this decision does not diminish your grief,” she said, adding her office’s Victim Services Division will “continue to support you, in any way you so choose, as you become the strong survivor that you are.” 

This is the second high-profile death involving law enforcement Conover has managed since she won her election in 2020. 

PCAO declines to charge Pima County corrections officers

Last December, Conover’s office decided not to pursue charges against officers at the Pima County Jail over the death of a 37-year-old man. Wade Welch died in August 2022 after he was repeatedly tased. During a press conference, Conover said she would not seek criminal charges against the corrections officers. 

“It took us a long time to get here today, because as we’ve said many times, we have to get such delicate matters right, and not rushed,” she said at the time. 

Welch died around 8 p.m. on Aug. 16, 2022, after he was shocked with a taser several times during a 30-minute incident. Weeks after his death, officials released video footage from body-cameras worn by the deputies. In the heavily edited video, Pima County corrections officers pushed Welch to the ground, handcuffed him, and placed a “spit hood” over his head. During this, the officers repeatedly used a taser on Welch.

Throughout the encounter, Welch repeatedly screamed for help, and said “I can’t breathe.” He later told officers he has a heart condition and asked to go to the hospital. “You’re killing me!” he screamed.

At least 10 officers were involved in the incident, with several piling onto Welch during the video. As the officers made Welch stand, he was gasping for air. An autopsy by the Pima County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Welch’s death a homicide. 

Conover told reporters she came to her decision after reviewing videos from the incident, including body-camera footage, closed-circuit television cameras, as well as an report by John McMahon, a veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department who was tasked with an independent analysis of the fatal incident.

McMahon said in the case of Welch, he reviewed body-cam footage and said he decided the use of force was “objectively reasonable” and “consistent with applicable laws.”