Clearwater deputy jusifitied in fatally shooting mentally ill man armed with a knife

“Guess I’m gonna lose my gun again,” an Idaho officer said minutes after fatally shooting a knife-wielding man whose family had called authorities for help because they said he was experiencing a mental health crisis.

The shooting and comments were captured on police-worn cameras, and NBC News obtained the videos through a public records request from the Lewiston Police Department. The agency reviewed the fatal shooting of Michael Trappett, 48, at his parents’ home Jan. 31 in Orofino, a town of roughly 3,100 in north Idaho.

Last month, Clearwater County Sheriff’s Cpl. Brittany Brokop's actions were determined to be justified by the Latah County prosecuting attorney, and she returned to regular patrol duty, Clearwater County Sheriff Chris Goetz said in a statement. She was placed on administrative leave in February.

Randall Carruth, a second deputy who shot Trappett, was also cleared by the prosecuting attorney and returned to patrol duty.

Brokop also appears to have been cleared of wrongdoing in a 2020 shooting while working for the same sheriff's office, placing her in a rare class of law enforcement officers who fire their service weapons more than once. The man who was shot in that case, Andrew Hull, 23, spoke out for the first time to NBC News, saying “she pulled that trigger just as fast as she could.”

“It went from 0 to 110 in a minute, and the next thing I knew, I was shot,” he said, adding that the bullet struck his right thigh, narrowly missing his femoral artery.

“I was 3 inches from death,” said Hull, who was intoxicated at the time of the shooting.

Officials said Hull was combative and removed a gun from a holster before the deputy fired.

Neither Brokop nor the Clearwater County Sheriff Chris Goetz responded to requests for comment. The Idaho chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police also did not respond to a request for comment. Idaho State Police, which investigated Hull’s shooting, referred questions about Hull's shooting to the department’s public records unit. The agency has not yet provided documents.

Court records for criminal charges filed against Hull confirmed Brokop’s role in the shooting.

Authorities from the prosecutor’s office in neighboring Latah County who reviewed the fatal January shooting said Trappett posed a deadly threat when he came within 10 feet of Brokop and Carruth. Efforts to reach Carruth for comment were unsuccessful.

In a federal lawsuit filed last month, Trappett’s family accused the deputies of excessive force and other allegations.

“We think Brittany Brokop should be held accountable for her actions,” said Trappett’s brother, Bill Trappett. “She’s gone too far.”

The family also wants the sheriff’s office to strengthen its de-escalation policy, he said.

In an April statement, the sheriff called the family’s notice of a lawsuit “false” and said Trappett was trying to “attack” officers when they fired. Goetz added that Michael Trappett has a “history of threatening and aggressive behavior” toward law enforcement, though it isn’t clear what incidents Goetz is referencing.

Bill Trappett said he knew of only one recent incident at a hospital when his brother was intoxicated and yelling at facility staff about having to wear a gown. In that case, officers tackled him and put him in a straight jacket, he said. But Michael Trappett wasn’t arrested, and his anger was directed at everybody — not just law enforcement, Bill Trappett said.