COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction fired the instructor charged in the fatal shooting of an officer during a training exercise earlier this year.
An ODRC spokesperson said David Pearson's termination will go into effect on Sept. 3.
The agency said Director Annette Chambers-Smith was briefed on the investigation conducted by the Ohio State Highway Patrol on Monday. At that time, the decision was made to fire Pearson.
Lt. Rodney Osborne was shot on April 9 during the training exercise at the Corrections Training Academy in Pickaway County. An autopsy report revealed Osborne was struck just above his bulletproof vest. OSHP was investigating his death as a reckless homicide.
Pearson was indicted on one misdemeanor charge of negligent homicide.
Documents were recently provided to 10TV by the attorney of Osborne's widow. The documents say Osborne, along with 14 others, were taking part in a 40-hour training exercise for the Special Tactics and Response Team at the Corrections Training Academy in Orient. It was led by
Pearson and five other S.T.A.R instructors.
In his statement to his attorney, Pearson said he noticed that Lt. Osborne was struggling to draw his pistol from his holster during one of the exercises and get it leveled on the target. He then stepped in front of Osborne to do what he calls a “mirror drill.” He instructed Osborne to mirror his actions while the two were standing face to face. Both Pearson and Osborne drew their pistols.
When Pearson pulled the trigger, his pistol went off and the round hit Osborne in the chest, documents say.
The OSHP said the ODRC’s policies and procedures do not reference a “mirror drill,” but there are some instances where someone can point a firearm at another person if certain conditions are met.
The report reads “prior to the shooting, Mr. Pearson’s actions did not meet the specific conditions required by ODRC policy and procedure to point his firearm at Mr. Osborne.”
Osborne worked with the ODRC for 13 years and worked at the Southern Ohio Corrections Facility in Scioto County, according to Chambers-Smith. He was recently named employee of the year at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility where he was the commander of the Special Response Team.
Pearson pleaded not guilty to the negligent homicide charge against him earlier in August. If convicted, he could spend six years behind bars for the misdemeanor. He has a pretrial hearing scheduled for September.