By Shereen Siewert
No criminal charges will be filed against a Lincoln County Sheriff’s deputy who fatally shot a man in December, according to a Wisconsin Department of Justice release.
Police said John Z. A. Moua was armed with a knife when deputies responded to a call on Dec. 10 at a residence on Shady Lane Avenue in Pine River Township. The 911 call came in at about 6:30 a.m. that day.
Lincoln County Sheriff’s Lt. Tyler Iverson, who has 17 years experience in the law enforcement field, shot Moua, who died at the scene.
Investigative files obtained from the Department of Criminal Investigation include witness statements that show Moua was increasingly paranoid in the hours leading up to the shooting, thought people were bleeding through the ceiling and believed police were surrounding the Shady Lane Avenue Home hours before they arrived.
A witness inside the home told police Moua took a knife from the kitchen the night before the shooting and was walking around the home talking to imaginary people, according to official case reports. Several people were inside the home, including one witness who said he was trying to get out of his room when he was faced with Moua, who had the knife in his right hand. The witness said he then grabbed Moua’s wrist and slammed the hand holding the knife on the door frame just before deputies ran into the home.
The witness said he “wasn’t sure” if Moua had the knife in his hand when he was shot. But after additional investigation, the Lincoln County District Attorney determined no criminal charges are warranted in the case.
Public files related to shootings by police can be viewed here.
