Mishawaka police release video of officer fatally shooting Michael Hass at Village Green
MISHAWAKA — Video footage released Wednesday of the fatal police shooting of a Mishawaka man in January doesn't show much of a clear picture of what exactly happened. Mishawaka's city attorney claimed a listener could determine two distinct types of gunfire, suggesting the man fired at officers before they returned fire.
Police have said that man, Michael Hass, pointed a gun at officers and fired it.
The Mishawaka Police Department on Wednesday released the video footage showing the fatal shooting of Hass by a Mishawaka officer at the Village Green Mobile Home Park after The Tribune filed a public records request for it.
An investigation conducted by South Bend Police and the St. Joseph County Prosecutor's Office found Officer Garrett Schock shot and killed Haas, 37, after he fired at Schock during a standoff in the late afternoon on Jan. 31.
The prosecutor's office ruled the shooting a justified homicide and did not file criminal charges.
Video footage
Officers were called to the 1400 block of Pheasant Run in Village Green on the evening of Jan. 31 for reports of a man threatening people with a shotgun while walking around the neighborhood. They arrived around 6:30 p.m. and a standoff ensued.
The video, taken from a dash camera on a Mishawaka police cruiser, shows Schock standing behind a police car aiming a rifle at the doorway of Haas' trailer, which is roughly a few hundred feet away. Officials have said there were multiple juveniles in the trailer at the time of the standoff.
Eventually, a shape becomes visible in the doorway of the trailer and police are heard shouting "Gun, he's got a gun!"
The video then blurs both the doorway and officer Schock's body. A low "boom" can be heard followed by five shots. Police said the boom is the sound of Haas firing his shotgun, which is distinct from the higher-pitched sound of Schock's rifle.
Mishawaka city attorney Pat Hinkle said the blurring is due to state law, which requires videos showing death or serious injury be obscured. Hinkle added that numerous officers were wearing body cameras during the incident, but that the cameras were blocked by coats due to the cold weather or the officers were taking cover and the footage doesn't show anything pertinent.
An internal Mishawaka Police Department investigation found no policy violations and no disciplinary action was taken, Hinkle said.
No one else was injured in the incident. Haas was taken to the hospital, and an autopsy found he died of a gunshot wound.
One resident who witnessed the standoff told The Tribune he saw Haas aim the shotgun at Schock, but that Haas did not fire before he was shot.
“The cop had just yelled at [Haas] to come out with his hands up and then he came to the door with the shotgun and the cop fired because [Haas] kind of was facing at the cop when he did it, with the gun,” said Shawn Nine, who lives nearby.
Officials have said that not every witness they interviewed saw Haas fire before Shock, but hold that "the video evidence was conclusive.”
Email Marek Mazurek at mmazurek@sbtinfo.com. Follow him on Twitter: @marek_mazurek
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Mishawaka police release video of fatal Village Green shooting
