(WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO)
Iowa regulators plan to sue the police department that has
long refused to release video showing a cop mistakenly shoot a mother dead
instead of her attacking dog — a horrific saga that played out in front of her
3-year-old son.
The Iowa Public Information Board voted Thursday to launch
legal action against the Burlington Police Department and other agencies, pushing
for the release of records from the January day Officer Jesse Hill shot and
killed 34-year-old Autumn Steele.
Hill was responding to a disturbance on Jan. 6 when he
found Steele in front of her house hitting her husband, police said. The
34-year-old mom spent the previous night in jail after being arrested on
domestic abuse charges, the Des Moines Register reported.
The cop fired his gun when the family’s German Shepherd,
Sammy, pounced on his back and bit him, police said. The bullets hit Steele
instead of the attacking dog, police said.
Steele’s 3-year-old son was standing next to her when she
was shot.
The dog attack justified the shooting, prosecutors
determined. Hill was cleared of any charges and returned to work earlier this
year.
Cops previously released a 12-second body cam video showing
the cop fire twice without warning.
“Get your dog!” Hill yelled as a dog growls in the
background. The video does not show the shepherd jump on the armed officer.
Animal officials later determined Sammy was not vicious and returned the pet to
the family.
But Steele’s family and local media have long pushed for
the release of the full body cam video, plus footage from the cop’s squad car
and 911 phone calls.
The Iowa Public Information Board sided with the family and
media in the Thursday decision.
The board, which oversees the state’s open records laws,
voted 4-3 to pursue charges against Iowa Department of Public Safety, the Iowa
Division of Criminal Investigation, the Burlington Police Department and the
Des Moines County Attorney.
“I’m, for one, uncomfortable with law enforcement
determining what should and shouldn’t be released,” said Information Board
member Bill Monroe, who voted in favor of the lawsuit.
Formal charges will be filed in the coming weeks, and the
case will be handled by a judge who can recommend the release of the records.
Officer Jesse Hill (l.) shot and killed 34-year-old mom
Autumn Steele in January.
