A Denver Police Department officer and a private security guard likely prevented other people from being injured or killed in July when they shot a man who was randomly firing a gun into a crowded downtown street, the Denver district attorney said.
Detective Randall Wagner and Edwin Montoya, a security guard for Mile High Protection Services, will not be charged in connection with the shooting of brothers Kevin Lee Jones, 40, and Robert Jones, 35, according to a letter to Police Chief Robert White from District Attorney Mitch Morrissey.
“The actions taken by Det. Wagner and Mr. Montoya in all probability prevented other people, none of whom were involved in the actual fist fight, from being shot and injured or killed,” the letter said.
The Jones brothers were involved in a large fight shortly after 1 a.m. July 10 near the intersection of 14th and Curtis streets. The brothers survived their gunshot wounds. Kevin Jones later was charged with criminal attempt of first-degree murder — extreme indifference and criminal attempt of first-degree assault and possession of a weapon by a previous offender.
Wagner was working a private, off-duty security detail nearby at the Epernay Lounge, and Montoya was working at the Auraria Student Lofts when the fight began. Montoya ran into the street and used pepper spray to break it up, Morrissey’s letter said.
Montoya also used his flashlight to signal for help, and Wagner had noticed the light flashing. As the two were talking about the fight, Kevin Jones approached the area on 14th Street and began firing at people, the letter said.
Wagner and Montoya returned fire. They struck Kevin Jones in the upper left leg and upper right chest. Robert Jones ran into the line of fire as he was running back to his brother, and he was shot in his left shoulder and right thigh, the letter said.
Surveillance cameras located on the city streets and at a nearby business captured the shooting, the letter said. The cameras show Kevin Jones retrieving something from the trunk of his car and returning to the scene and shooting.
“One need only review the video evidence to conclude that Kevin Jones’ actions were malicious, malevolent and taken with extreme indifference toward the value of human life,” Morrissey wrote. “The video evidence and witness statements make it clear he was firing a handgun, indiscriminately, down a crowded street.”
The Auraria Lofts did not provide its surveillance footage to police investigators. And Montoya did not activate a body camera that he was wearing, the letter said. Wagner was not wearing a body camera.
During the shooting, Wagner fired 10 rounds from a 9mm Glock pistol, Montoya fired eight rounds from a 40-caliber Glock pistol, and Kevin Jones fired eight rounds from a 9mm Ruger before his gun malfunctioned, the letter said.
Morrissey determined the police officer and the security guard were justified in their actions when they shot both men. Kevin Jones was jeopardizing people’s lives, and Robert Jones, who was not armed, put himself in harm’s way when he turned to join his brother who was firing a weapon in the street, the letter said.
“Robert Jones was not an innocent bystander,” the letter said.
