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Newly released video footage from the Monroe County District Attorney's Office shows Pennsylvania State Police troopers shooting 19-year-old Christian J. Hall with his hands up while clutching a BB gun after 90 minutes of what they confirm were failed negotiation tactics in Hamilton Township on Dec. 30, 2020.
Use of deadly force “was justified due to Hall’s actions under the circumstances,” Michael Mancuso, Monroe County’s first assistant district attorney told LehighValleyLive.
“A tragic situation, but a situation that was fueled by Hall’s mental state and his desire to end his life."
State police maintain that Hall was refusing to drop his weapon after repeated demands, then pointed it toward officers.
After being shot three times by troopers, Hall was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Pocono in East Stroudsburg, where he was pronounced dead.
The footage also included anonymous audio from a 911 call the day of the incident that reported a "suicider" on the "I-80 bridge," the video shows.
The Hall family has been fighting for the PA Attorney General's Office to investigate his death in an unbiased process since early February as they say Hall was suffering from a mental health crisis and needed alternative assistance, according to a petition released by civil rights attorney Ben Crump.
"He was looking for help, but instead of getting help, he was killed by those who were supposed to help him," Hall's mother Fe Hall previously told News Watch 16.
The family's high-profile attorneys Ben Crump and Devon Jacob are expected to comment on the DA's ruling Wednesday morning during a virtual press conference.
Authorities did not identify the troopers involved and they were recently placed back on full duty, Corporal Brent Miller, Director of Communications with the Pennsylvania State Police previously told Daily Voice.
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