A report from the Iowa Attorney General’s Office says the fatal shooting of a man by a Marion Police officer was justified.
Marion Officer Spenser Hartman responded to a call February 4th that a man wanted to talk to police. The officer found Saber Bernard talking with a neighbor on the sidewalk who said they were discussing good, evil and salvation. The report says Bernard did not want to talk to the officer because he “worked for evil.”
Another officer arrived and they say Bernard eventually pulled a 24-inch machete from under his shirt and charged the officers saying ““God is my savior! You will not stop me! Kill me!” Officer used a taser on Bernard, but he kept coming at them and Hartman fired one shot. Bernard was hit in the stomach and taken to the hospital where he later died.
The report says the officer sought first to neutralize the deadly threat with verbal commands, and used a taser before using deadly force.