DELTONA, Fla. – A grand jury on Wednesday declined to indict deputy Todd Raible for manslaughter culpable negligence.
Raible, 36, shot and killed Derek Cruice, 26, when Cruice resisted a search warrant at his Deltona home, according to the Volusia County Sheriff's Office.
"They did their duty today as, difficult as that was, and I believe that is a better way to solve a situation where you have credibility issues and factual questions where facts aren't necessarily clear," said State Attorney RJ Larizza.
However, attorney Mark NeJame said the grand jury didn't get the full story because not all the witnesses were called to testify. The family said justice for their son was not served.
"It shouldn't have happened the way it did in my heart," said Sheila Cruice, the shooting victim's mother. "It shouldn't have happened. I just wanted to make it right."
Nejame said the family will now move forward with a civil suit against the Volusia County Sheriff's Office. He also said Volusia County has a $5 million dollar insurance policy for negligence matters like this one and should have used it for this case.
Sheriff Ben Johnson released a point-by-point statement defending his deputies. You can read that full statement below:
"As Sheriff of Volusia County, I'm keenly aware that the last seven-and-a-half months have been extremely difficult and trying for our community. Some have questioned why I haven't publicly spoken about the shooting since the initial aftermath. The reason is because it was necessary to let the independent investigation run its course without making any statements that might have been misinterpreted as trying to influence the process. With the Grand Jury now having rendered its decision, I would like to take this opportunity to address some issues surrounding the events of March 4, 2015.
First off, the circumstances that led us to the residence on Maybrook Drive have never been fully disclosed. These are the facts: Our investigators had been following up on an anonymous tip indicating that narcotics activity was taking place at the residence in question. The drug activity was later confirmed through subsequent investigation, resulting in the issuance by a judge on March 3, 2015 of a warrant to search the residence. The deputies responded to the residence the next day, March 4, 2015, to serve the warrant. With that said, a number of false narratives regarding the circumstances of the shooting have been perpetuated through social media as well as countless web sites. Time and space don't permit me to address each and every one of them. But here are the most persistent of the false narratives along with the correct information:
False Narrative #1: It was a SWAT raid
This is incorrect. The SWAT Team wasn't deployed and wasn't present at the scene. While Investigator Raible also is a member of the SWAT Team, he was at the scene in his capacity as a narcotics investigator.
False Narrative #2: It was a no-knock warrant
This is incorrect. Deputies knocked and announced themselves multiple times and made conscious efforts to make themselves known and visible to the occupants of the house. For instance, when deputies arrived at the residence, they didn't disable the exterior front porch light that was on at the time. While undercover investigators staged out of sight by the garage door, a uniformed deputy went up to the front door and two marked patrol units were parked along the street directly in front of the house so they would be visible to the occupants. The uniformed deputy at the front door knocked approximately 7-8 times, then knocked again and when he initially got no response, announced "Sheriff's Office" multiple times and also spoke to someone through the door while identifying himself and requesting that the person come to the door. Additionally, while this was going on, the blinds from the window in the front of the house were pulled back two different times. All of this transpired before the front door was opened.
False Narrative #3: The occupants of the house didn't know it was law enforcement at the door
This is incorrect. A uniformed deputy was clearly visible at the front door and announced his presence several times. Based on interviews conducted by FDLE with the occupants of the house, Derek Cruice went to the front door and looked through the peephole to see who was there. Two other occupants, including one person who was sleeping in the same bedroom as Derek Cruice and another person who was sleeping in a room in the back of the residence, both said they heard the deputy announce himself while knocking.
False Narrative #4: Deputies encountered no resistance
This is incorrect. By the statements of the deputies at the scene, after the first occupant exited the residence and was being secured, the front door was still open a few inches. Moments later, the door was slammed shut and locked, apparently by someone inside the residence. That in and of itself was an act of resistance and non-compliance that left the deputies who were by the front door in an extremely dangerous, vulnerable and exposed position. For that reason, after the door handle was tried and the door was determined to be locked, a supervisor made an immediate decision to have the door breached. Because it apparently had been locked by someone from the inside, it took two kicks to force open the door. When the door was forced open, Investigator Raible encountered an individual later determined to be Derek Cruice who first moved around the swinging door and then immediately started moving towards Investigator Raible. Investigator Raible then observed the individual move his left hand and right shoulder towards his chest and then bring the two together. In that moment, Investigator Raible perceived the individual's motions as that of someone in the process of drawing a gun and preparing to aim and shoot. Believing that his life was in danger and that he was about to get shot, Investigator Raible made the decision to fire his weapon. Based on their interviews, two other deputies who were positioned by the front door when it was breached and were in a position to observe Cruice's motions also believed that he was getting ready to fire a gun at them.
Drugs and indicators of illegal activity were located inside the residence. However, as we all now know, Derek Cruice wasn't armed. His death was an extremely unfortunate tragedy of circumstances. Immediately following the shooting, I met with a group of protestors and also visited Derek's mother to express my condolences and personal regret for his death. And I do so now publicly to Derek's family and to all of those who knew and loved Derek and were affected by his death.
Law enforcement officers have a tremendous responsibility as well as a dangerous job that sometimes requires them to make split second, life-and-death decisions. That Derek Cruice was unarmed makes the outcome of this incident truly tragic. But it in no way alters the facts and circumstances that caused Investigator Raible and the other deputies in that fateful moment to perceive that their lives were in danger. Given the rapid flow of events, Investigator Raible had no more than 3-5 seconds to decide on a course of action. Unless put in that same position, no one can possibly know what that's like. Still, when it comes to the use of deadly force, the actions of law enforcement must be reviewed, investigated and judged. This is only appropriate. The standard that the law requires us to judge our law enforcement officers' actions by are the perception of the officers and the information they have at their disposal at the time that they take action. Clearly, the outcome of this incident was unfortunate. But the deputy's actions weren't criminal. After hearing all of the facts, that's what the Grand Jury concluded today.
While an internal administrative review of the incident is under way, I continue to support our deputies. I also place a great deal of trust in our judicial system and was prepared to accept the rendering of the Grand Jury in whichever way it ruled. It's my personal hope and prayer that the community will also accept the Grand Jury's decision and allow the healing to continue for all concerned."
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Deputies said 217 grams of marijuana, a scale, a drug ledger and about $3,000 in cash were found inside Cruice's home.
Raible was placed on administrative leave after the shooting, which is standard procedure.
Stay tuned to ClickOrlando.com for more updates.