Rockford officer cleared in Christmas Eve shooting incident

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — A Rockford policeman was cleared in an officer-involved shooting investigation on Friday.

This morning, the Winnebago County State’s Attorney cleared officer Michael Rhein of any wrongdoing in the shooting of Patrick Kirby.

The incident happened around 2:00 am on Christmas Eve in the 1300 block of Charles Street, near UW Health SwedishAmerican.

According to the Winnebago County State’s Attorney’s Office, officers were called by a resident of an apartment who claimed her neighbor was saying things like “help me” and “kill me” repeatedly.

Officers were able to gain access to the apartment and were immediately encountered by Patrick Kirby at the door, who had a knife and boxcutter in his hands, police said.

Officers commanded Kirby to drop the weapon, but he continued to advance, and one officer, identified as Officer Michael Rhein, fired three rounds, killing Kirby.

The several-month-long investigation, which looked at body camera footage and witness testimony, found that Rhein’s actions were justified because Kirby was a threat to cause harm to officers and others.

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