A grand jury ruled Monday that a Clackamas County sheriff’s deputy was justified in fatally shooting a man after a Happy Valley traffic stop on Sept. 27.
According to the district attorney’s office, 26-year-old Nathan Honeycutt was holding a gun when he was shot and killed by Deputy Jansen Bento.
Related: A Clackamas County sheriff’s deputy shot and killed a person during a traffic stop
Deputies first spotted Honeycutt driving a stolen pickup truck with no license plates. According to police, they attempted to pull him over, but he drove away, crashed the pickup and fled on foot.
Bento said that when he and other deputies caught up with Honeycutt, they found a revolver in his hand.
According to court documents, Honeycutt refused to drop the gun and Bento shot him three times.
Honeycutt died at the scene.
The grand jury ruled unanimously in finding that Bento’s use of deadly physical force was justified.
A Clackamas County Sheriff's Office patrol vehicle.
SoulRider.222 / Flickr (Creative Commons license)
