CHARLOTTESVILLE – The Albemarle County District Attorney's Office has reportedly acquitted a Waynesboro police officer of opening fire on and killing a suspect following a standoff on Interstate 64 in April.
Kevin D. Taylor II, 29, of Charlottesville was shot in the back of the head and back on the evening of April 11, shortly after he shot and killed a man in Waynesboro, authorities said.
After Taylor was killed, two weapons were eventually recovered from his vehicle.
That same evening, officers responded to the Parkway Village Apartments in Waynesboro, where they found a man with a gunshot wound to the thigh, the report said. The victim was uncooperative, but witnesses gave police a description of his car.
A Waynesboro police detective, unnamed in the report but identified as “RB,” began pursuing Taylor after seeing the vehicle run a red light. Taylor fled by driving east on US 250 and then I-64 into Albemarle County while two other Waynesboro police vehicles joined the pursuit. The report states Taylor passed vehicles on both shoulders of the interstate before colliding on the left shoulder and striking a guardrail. His car drove back across the interstate and came to a stop on the right shoulder at mile marker 102.2, about two miles into Albemarle County.
Police blocked off traffic and attempted to negotiate with Taylor to surrender for 59 minutes, but the report says Taylor repeatedly told police he wanted to die, saying “I die today” or “I want to die” more than 20 times. The report says he continually disobeyed police commands during the nearly hour-long standoff by reaching into his car, his waistband and his pockets.
“The police repeatedly told him they did not want to shoot him,” the report said.
Waynesboro Detective RB positioned himself behind Taylor's car with his gun drawn and remained there throughout the ordeal. Taylor told him to “aim high,” but the detective informed him that police did not intend to shoot him. When a trained Albemarle County negotiator arrived on the scene about 20 minutes after the standoff began, he asked Taylor how the situation could be resolved peacefully. The report states that Taylor responded, “Peacefully fire all the shots you have.”
After reiterating his intention to die, a second attempt to reach his mother by phone was successful after an earlier call failed to go through. However, as the negotiator approached Taylor, his demeanor changed, according to the report, and the scene quickly became chaotic as a police dog became increasingly loud. Taylor yelled to his mother that he was sorry, and the negotiator backed away while police began preparing non-lethal foam batons and prepping the dog.
The report states that as the negotiator approached the suspect again, three things happened almost simultaneously: An officer fired a non-lethal shot, Taylor jumped into his car and slid into the front seat, and the Waynesboro detective opened fire, shooting seven times.
“Taylor was shot once in the back and once in the back of the head, and he also had a graze wound to his back,” the report states. A .40-caliber pistol was found in the driver's seat and a .45-caliber pistol was found between the seat and the center console.
Albemarle County Prosecutor James Hingeley stated in his report that the evidence included photographs, police reports, footage from police vehicles and body-worn cameras, testimony, a laboratory analysis of the Waynesboro detective's weapon, a sound analysis, an autopsy report and a review of police policies in Waynesboro and Albemarle County.
Hingeley said the evidence did not indicate criminal liability and said the Waynesboro detective's actions were justified.
“While Taylor's death is tragic and unfortunate under the circumstances, it is important to remember that police spent nearly an hour de-escalating the situation and safely apprehending Taylor while Taylor repeatedly attempted to create a situation where officers had no choice but to shoot him to protect themselves and others,” Hingeley said in the report.
Albemarle County Assistant District Attorney Susan Baumgartner also signed the report.
Court records show that a certain Kevin D. Taylor II had previously been arrested in Albemarle County for robbery, attempted robbery, malicious wounding, unlawful assault, burglary, battery on a family member and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
Following the April shooting, the Waynesboro detective was placed on paid administrative leave. On Monday morning, Chief David Shaw of the Waynesboro Police Department emailed a statement to The News Leader.
“Now that the criminal investigation has concluded with a decision and verdict, we will be opening an internal administrative investigation into the events of the April 10 incident,” Shaw said. “Any questions regarding the criminal investigation into the officer-involved shooting and its final disposition should be directed to the Virginia State Police or Commonwealth Attorney Hingeley of Albemarle. The officer(s)' involvement status remains a personnel matter while we complete the necessary processes related to these circumstances.”
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Brad Zinn is the police, courts and breaking news reporter for The News Leader. Have a news tip? Or something that needs to be investigated? You can email reporter Brad Zinn (he/him) at [email protected]. You can also follow him on X (formerly Twitter).
