A Philadelphia judge on Tuesday dismissed all charges against former Police Officer Mark Dial, ruling that prosecutors had not presented evidence that he had committed a crime. Dial, 27, a five-year veteran of the force, shot and killed Irizarry, 27, as Irizarry sat in his car during a traffic stop in Kensington on Aug. 14.
Police body camera footage shown at the preliminary hearing of fired Officer Mark Dial showed Irizarry holding a knife near his right leg as police approached his stopped vehicle. The officers had pulled Irizarry over on a residential street after a short pursuit prompted by erratic driving.
Police initially said Irizarry had lunged at Dial with a knife, leading the officer to shoot him.But video showed that wasn’t true: Irizarry was in his car, with the windows rolled up and a knife in his hand, when Dial opened fire within just seconds of getting out of his police cruiser.
Dial’s partner, Officer Michael Morris testified Tuesday that he saw the driver holding a knife with a black metal handle that could have looked like a gun. He said Irizarry started to raise it as Dial approached the car.
Municipal Judge Wendy Pew agreed with defense attorneys who argued the officer could have feared for his life because he thought the driver, 27-year-old Eddie Irizarry, had a gun.
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