Madison County DA won’t file charges against deputies who fatally shot man
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Madison County DA won’t file charges against deputies who fatally shot man

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The death of a man shot and killed by Madison County sheriff’s deputies in January was “tragic” but does not warrant criminal charges, District Attorney Robert Broussard said Thursday in announcing his office would take “no further action” in the case.

Ray Dean King, 50, was shot and killed by deputies who responded Jan. 5 to Dixon Road in Hazel Green on a call of a woman complaining of an armed domestic abuser with a gun, Broussard said.

Meanwhile, deputies received a call a short while later of shots fired in the area, and neighbors gave a different address then the one given by the woman.

“Faced with conflicting information, deputies responded to 201 Dixon Rd. Unbeknownst to them, the address they arrived at was not the address where shots had been fired,” Broussard said.

“Deputies knocked on the front door. The homeowner, Ray King, answered the door with a firearm in his hand which he pointed at police. Deputies, facing what they believed to be an armed suspect pointing a weapon at them, shot and killed Mr. King,” the DA continued.

Broussard said the law supported the deputies’ beliefs that their lives were in danger by an armed King.

“Upon review, it appears that Mr. King did not know that the individuals he was dealing with were sheriff’s deputies and he armed himself before opening the door. Likewise, deputies were conducting a lawful investigation into a reportedly violent active shooter,” said Broussard.

“When the door was opened by an armed individual who pointed a gun at them, they reasonably feared for their lives at the moment they fired,” he said. “While this situation is tragic, it does not violate a criminal statute under Alabama law.”

The review by Madison County District Attorney’s Office ends the agency’s involvement in the case, Broussard said.

“While all agree this was a tragic episode, criminal statutes are designed to encompass bad actors and not tragic mistakes,” he said. “No further action will be taken by this office on this matter.”