Baker County District Attorney says officers justified in shooting suspect
By Joe Hathaway on Thursday, January 11th, 2024 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
BAKER CITY – Two Baker City Police officers were justified when they shot and wounded a suspect during a traffic stop on January 2. That’s according to Baker County District Attorney Greg Baxter.
Baxter says 30-year-old Justin Burkeen of Boise brandished a pellet gun and fired a pellet, hitting one of the officers. Officers Mark Powell and Mason Powell (no relation) then both shot Burkeen.
Neither officer will not face criminal charges, Baxter said in a press release.
Burkeen remains in a Boise hospital recovering from gunshot wounds.
Baxter said he plans to convene a grand jury on Thursday, Jan. 11 to consider possible criminal charges against Burkeen.
Below is the full text of Baxter’s press release:
On January 2, 2024, the officers conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle in which Justin D. Burkeen, 30, of Boise, Idaho, was riding as a passenger. The officers noted that Burkeen had what appeared to be a firearm on his lap. Burkeen stated that the gun was not real. He then appeared to put the gun between his legs. During the traffic stop, the officers recognized Burkeen from an incident several weeks prior. Burkeen was uncooperative with their questions. The officers eventually asked Burkeen to get out of the vehicle. Burkeen then grabbed the gun from between his legs and quickly pointed the gun at Officer Mark Powell, as he opened the door. Burkeen fired what turned out to be a pellet at Officer Mark Powell. Both officers responded by firing their weapons at Burkeen. Burkeen continued to be uncooperative before he was taken into custody and transported to St. Alphonsus Medical Center. He is currently being treated at a Boise area hospital for gunshot wounds.
District Attorney Baxter made this determination based off of witness statements, the statements of the officers, evidence collected at the scene, and the officer’s body cameras.
Baxter stated: “There have been many rumors about this incident within our community. It is important that the public have the trust of our law enforcement members, and that they know that these two officers acted appropriately during this tragic incident.”
Baker City Police Chief Ty Duby also released this statement after the District Attorney’s decision:
I am pleased to find out today that Baker County District Attorney Greg Baxter has ruled that our two officers who were involved in an officer related shooting on January 2nd, 2024, acted in accordance with the law and their use of force was justified.
The Baker City Police Department prides itself on providing professional police services and promoting the safety and welfare of our citizens and visitors. I believe in building trust between police and our community and that is done through transparency and accountability. This incident was investigated by the Major Crimes Team comprising of the Oregon State Police, the Baker County Sheriff’s Office, and the Baker City Police Department. It was a professional, thorough investigation that led to this decision by the District Attorney.
Baker City Police have been utilizing body cameras for about 10 years as part of our goal of police accountability and transparency. We recently upgraded to new cameras which provided a clear picture of what happened during this incident.
In these times of social media, police encounters with the public get second guessed and judged by social media armchair experts. It is extremely important to hold comments and judgment on these events until a complete and thorough investigation has been completed by trained investigators. It is important to point out that in the United States there are about 600,000 to 700,000 police officers and those officers have about 375 million contacts a year with citizens. Out of those 375 million contacts about 100 encounters end up in police shootings. This statistic has held fairly steady since 2015.
The best predictor of police behavior is civilian behavior. When police officers encounter armed, violent and resisting suspects, officers must take actions to defend themselves and the public. That was the case in this event, and I am extremely proud of how our police officers reacted as trained. These officers showed restraint, professionalism, and compassion throughout the event.
Officer Mason Powell has been with BCPD for two years and prior to that spent about one year with Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office as a reserve.
Officer Mark Powell was hired by BCPD as a code enforcement officer in 2014. He was hired as a patrol officer in 2018.
Chief Ty Duby
Baker City Police Department
Previous stories on this incident can be found at
January 2- https://elkhornmediagroup.com/officer-involved-shooting…/
January 3- https://elkhornmediagroup.com/investigation-into-police…/
January 10- https://elkhornmediagroup.com/grand-jury-to-consider…/
