MANSFIELD — A grand jury determined Tuesday that officers’ actions were a “justifiable use of force” during an incident that resulted in the death of an Army veteran following an hours-long standoff along Peterson Road last summer.
The announcement was made Tuesday afternoon via a press release issued by Richland County Prosecutor Gary Bishop.
Sean C. Rowe, 38, was shot and killed by officers on Aug. 4.
His death ended an hours-long standoff between him and law enforcement that began when Richland County Sheriff’s Office deputies attempted to serve him a search warrant of the Peterson Road house and a warrant on a felony charge.
“Officers eventually gained entrance to the home where they encountered (Rowe),” the news release said, adding Rowe attacked an officer while wielding two machetes.
Officer Paul Webb Jr. of Mansfield Division of Police and Rod Roose, an Ontario Police officer, fired their weapons, hitting Rowe six times, according to an autopsy report. The officers both served on the Allied Special Operations Response Team, or ASORT, a local SWAT team.
Both officers were placed on paid administrative leave, per protocol. They have since been reinstated.
Officers also said Rowe hurled Molotov cocktails toward a negotiator during the standoff.
Richland County Sheriff’s Office deputies have said the office was inundated with complaints about Rowe prior to the incident.
“The sheriff’s office had received multiple citizens’ complaints during the preceding 30 days. It soon became apparent that (Rowe) was livestreaming himself on social media. He was observed to be consuming liquor and making aggressive statements as well as gestures,” read Bishop’s news release.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation handled the investigation, which concluded in December, according to a BCI spokesman.
Rowe, an Army veteran, drew national attention around six years ago when he founded a group aimed at fighting ISIS.
He served in the Army for eight years before being honorably discharged with a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Rowe’s family has contended police exacerbated his PTSD on the day of the standoff when an armored vehicle rammed into the garage at his residence.
I don’t know which draws me more to watch The Accountant, the movie, or the song. I have a number of mental diagnosis’ by my Shrink. ADHD, OCPD, Paranoia, etc. I can’t help myself from examining a song or movie for a “deeper meanin”. 8 years in the Service has certainly left a mark on Sean’s Soul. When he expresses it in music, it’s an art form. I read that he had begun a group of anti-ISIS members. His body left the service, but his mind never did. this was a case of a Troubled Man being unable to direct his anger and his love towards being positive. He needed more outlets for his emotions to flow. It’s very sad for him to fall through the cracks of a system where veterans, which I am not, are released back into society without reckognizing that he has these issues. I Pray for him.
Hey. I thought this article was about Sean Rowe the singer too. It’s not. Sean Rowe the singer is alive and well. Sad for this dude, though.
I only learned of Sean Rowe about 6 weeks ago in the closing credits of The Accountant. I’m not a defence veteran, but a now-retired 30-year Police Officer diagnosed with Severe PTSD shortly before my retirement. The Police Service? Couldn’t have given a damn / their priority was ‘get him off our books.’ Sean’s gorgeous song ‘Tryin’ to Leave Something Behind’ struck a real chord with me. I don’t think I’m being too romantic to suggest his style is very Leonard Cohen in delivery & pathos. I’m sorry he died in such circumstances and I’m hopeful the police involved have recovered from what will always be traumatic events.
To a fallen brother,
Our scars are not seen nor the pain within, only we know the hell from where we have been. Our life was a journey that only we could depend. Fighting for the country we wanted to defend. Our pain is our own and no one understands. We take it with us wherever we go looking happy but really feel low. Till the day it consumes me I will continue the fight, never knowing the healing light. Your song says so much that few may get, but one that I, can never forget! Now rest in peace with honor you served, with wings from God your certainly free. I can only wish someday I see.