An investigation into the fatal shooting of a Clearwater County man by sheriff’s deputies has not yet been completed, Sheriff Chris Goetz said Thursday.
The Lewiston Police Department is heading the investigation into the Jan. 31 shooting of Michael J. Trappett, of Orofino. Trappett was killed during a confrontation with deputies outside his parents’ home on Harmony Heights Loop Road. In a text message to the Lewiston Tribune on Thursday, Goetz said he has not yet heard anything about the investigation and is still waiting. The two deputies involved have been on administrative leave since the incident.
According to an earlier news release from the sheriff’s department, deputies were dispatched to the residence at about 2:24 a.m. Jan. 31 for a report of an aggressive, intoxicated man armed with a knife. When the deputies arrived, they were not able initially to locate the man, but later encountered him outside the residence. The man, later identified as Trappett, was armed with a knife and became aggressive toward the deputies with the knife. Trappett would not respond to verbal commands and deadly force was used, the sheriff’s office reported.
Both deputies had body cameras recording the incident and the footage, along with audio recordings from the sheriff’s dispatch office, were turned over to the Lewiston police.
Trappett’s family held a livestream news conference Feb. 16 in which they claimed the sheriff’s office lied about the incident and that Trappett was not aggressive or dangerous. They said Trappett had suffered from mental health problems. (Lewiston Tribune)
