A Fayette County coroner's jury ruled that police were justified
in using deadly force against a man who allegedly ran down one officer
and tried to run down two others. Kermith Sonnier Jr., 37, of
Brownsville, died May 5 from one of four shots fired by either Redstone
Township police Captain H. Dennis Field or Brownsville officer Autumn
Fike, authorities said. The bullet was too deformed for ballistics to
conclusively link it to a specific gun, according to testimony at
Thursday's coroner's inquest. But Field has told investigators he fired
three .45-caliber shots - two as Sonnier's truck passed by, and one
into its tire after it stopped so the truck couldn't travel in reverse.
Fike fired one from her .40 caliber weapon. The bullet that killed
Sonnier was a .45 caliber slug, testimony showed. Neither officer
testified at the inquest. Sonnier was chased by Fike when he sped away
from an officer who tried to talk to him while he was parked in an area
known for drug activity. Sonnier drove into some woods at one point and
turned his truck around and ran down Fike, authorities said. Field then
fired his gun. The victim's father, Kermith Sonnier Sr., said he still
believes his son was murdered and questioned bruises and other injuries
found on his son. A coroner determined those injuries weren't from a
police beating, but likely occurred as much as 24 hours before Sonnier
died.[
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