CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say two Cedar Rapids officers were justified in fatally shooting a man who was stabbing his former girlfriend.
Officers Ashley Steil and Jeremiah White shot Markell Bivins, 25, on Sept. 12 after responding to a call about a domestic disturbance. State investigators say the woman had refused to rekindle her relationship with Bivins, which prompted him to threaten her life.
The investigators say Bivins lunged at the woman and stabbed her after officers arrived at an apartment. White tackled Bivins and Steil shot Bivins twice in the buttocks. Investigators say the woman got away, but Bivins continued to struggle with White, who then shot Bivins in the chest.
A report issued by the state attorney general’s office says Bivins “left the officers no choice but to use deadly force.”
