The letter released yesterday from the US Attorney's Office in Utah and the Justice Department's civil rights decision said federal officials, including FBI agents, are reviewing the September shooting of Darrien Hunt by two Saratoga Springs police officers.
In the letter, dated Thursday, federal officials said they are seeking any additional information the family would like to provide about the case.
The letter was shared with reporters by an attorney for Hunt's family, which has filed a civil rights lawsuit against the officers and the city of Saratoga Springs.
Messages seeking more detail about the Department of Justice review were not returned by a spokeswoman for the US Attorney's Office in Utah.
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Hunt's family filed a USD 2 million civil rights lawsuit in January against the officers and the city. It contends that Hunt wasn't a threat and was fatally shot on September 10, 2014, after he tripped while running from two Saratoga Springs officers. He was carrying the sword as part of a Japanese anime costume, according to his family.
Earlier this month, an attorney for the city said Hunt was not shot because of his skin color but because of his reckless actions, and that the officers were defending themselves and protecting others. Lawyer Heather White said at a news conference that Hunt was acting violently and irrationally.
County prosecutors ruled last year that the shooting was legally justified, saying the officers feared for their lives and the lives of others. County Attorney Jeff Buhman said investigators found no evidence that race or ethnicity played a role in the shooting.
Saratoga Springs is a city of about 23,000 people that counts 93 per cent of its population as being white and less than 1 per cent being black, according to figures from the US Census.