NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — The Newport News Commonwealth's Attorney's Office said that an officer who killed a man after that man shot a civilian and another officer was justified in his use of deadly force.
The office released their review of a deadly police shooting on August 17, 2019 at the Cottage Grove Apartments where Jerome Uzzle was shot and killed.
Uzzle was wanted for killing 34-year-old Chandra Eason after her body was found in the driver's seat of a car at a Circle K gas station just outside of Kiln Creek earlier that day.
Police were able to single out Uzzle as the suspect after he was seen on surveillance video driving away from the scene of the crime.
Authorities went to his home on Madison Avenue later that day to arrest Uzzle, but the situation escalated. Police said as they approached his home, Uzzle came out of a different apartment and approached officers from a different side of the complex.
Newport News Officer Robert Stewart was sitting in his police car with a civilian who was there for a ride-along while police were trying to arrest Uzzle.
According to the review, Uzzle approached Stewart's car from the driver's side and shot into it, seriously injuring both Stewart and the civilian. Officer Stewart was able to return fire twice before his gun misfired and stopped working.
Officer Branden Kidder was parked just around the corner from where Officer Stewart and the civilian were shot. Kidder immediately drove towards the scene, then got out of his car and shot Uzzle twice. Uzzle was taken into police custody afterward and sent to Riverside Regional Medical Center to be treated for his injuries. However, his wounds were too severe and he died at the hospital.
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The medical examiner's office determined that Uzzle died due to a gunshot wound to his torso. Lab analysis confirmed that the bullet lodged in his torso was fired from Officer Kidder's firearm.
That same analysis also confirmed that the gun Uzzle used to shoot Officer Stewart and the civilian was the same gun that was used to kill Chandra Eason.
Prosecutors determined that Jerome Uzzle posed a threat to members of the public and police officers. The office justified Officer Brandon Kidder's use of deadly force and won't take further action in this case.