The former Tucson police officer who shot and killed a man in a mobilized wheelchair last year has been indicted on one count of manslaughter, his attorney and Pima County’s top prosecutor said Thursday.
Pima County Attorney Laura Conover announced the grand jury indictment of Ryan Remington at a news conference. She said her “office put together a team of seasoned former prosecutors from outside of Pima County to help guide the investigation and inform our decision on how to proceed with potential prosecution.”
Remington was working off-duty security at a Walmart store when he fatally shot Richard Lee Richards, 61.
“There is no joy in this announcement today,” Conover said. “I cannot turn back the hands of time. Not for Mr. Richards and not for Mr. Remington and his colleagues. But we have an absolute obligation to seek justice for the citizens of Pima County. Rest assured that when challenging events occur that require our consideration, we will go quietly and steadily about our work, and we will do what we believe is right.”
Conover did not take any questions from reporters at the news conference. She said her office began reviewing the case in December and by early summer had decided to seek a grand jury review. The grand jury indicted Remington on Wednesday, Conover said.
Attorney Mike Storie confirmed earlier in the day that Remington, who was fired from the police department in January, had been indicted.
On Nov. 29, a Walmart employee alerted Remington, who was off-duty and working security, after Richards reportedly stole a toolbox, a press release from TPD said.
According to police, the employee said he caught up with Richards as he fled the store and asked for a receipt for the items he was carrying, to which Richards flashed a knife and replied, “Here’s your receipt.”
Remington
Richards continued to head through the Walmart and Lowe’s parking lots. According to the Walmart employee, Richards said, “If you want me to put down the knife, you’re going to have to shoot me.”
Remington and another officer followed Richards to the Lowe’s on Valencia Road near Midvale Road and yelled at him to stop as he approached the garden section entrance.
WARNING: This video contains graphic content. Store surveillance video and police body-worn camera video of a Tucson Police officer shooting a man in a motorized wheelchair outside of a Lowe's Home Improvement store on W. Valencia Road on Nov. 29, 2021. Video courtesy of Tucson Police Department.
Remington then fired at Richards nine times, striking him in the back and the side, police said. He was declared dead at the scene.
Conover said by bringing in veterans with no ties to Pima County, like Rick Romley, the longtime Maricopa County Attorney, and Don Conrad, a veteran litigator who served Maricopa County, the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, brought independence into the investigation.
Under the direction of police Chief Chad Kasmar, Remington, who was hired on Jan. 6, 2017, was terminated from his job in January.
Kasmar issued a statement of Thursday regarding the indictment.
“This tragedy greatly impacted the Tucson community and this department,” Kasmar said. “Today, we received notice that Ryan Remington has been indicted by a grand jury and faces criminal charges. This is now a matter for the courts to adjudicate.”
Former Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus had moved to fire Remington after the incident, stating that he was “deeply troubled by Remington’s actions.”
In a statement last year, Tucson Mayor Regina Romero also described Remington’s actions as “unconscionable and indefensible.”
Rick Resch and John Bradley, the attorneys representing Richards’ family, said the family is relieved Remington has been indicted and will proceed with a civil rights lawsuit against him.
“A civil lawsuit is an important part of seeking justice for Mr. Richards and his family, too,” Bradley said. “This was not a rapidly changing, dynamic situation where law enforcement officers are called upon to make difficult split-second decisions. This was a slow moving seven-minute walk alongside someone in a battery-powered wheelchair that, according to the manufacturer and the video itself, has a maximum speed of 5 mph. The video of Remington shooting and killing Mr. Richards while he was in a wheelchair rightly shocks the conscience of the country. Nothing Mr. Richards did, might have done, or failed to do justified him being shot in the back nine times.”
In Arizona, manslaughter charges typically refer to “recklessly” causing another person’s death.
Remington was served with a summons to court and there will be an arraignment next week, Conover said.
