Iowa Attorney General Breanna Bird determined that the Waterloo police officer who shot and killed a man in March was justified in the use of deadly force and will not face criminal charges.
After a brief standoff with police on March 26, police shot 41-year-old John Piazza when they said he pointed a shotgun at an officer through the window of his house, according to a report released on Monday. The attorney general's office said that after reviewing body camera footage and an investigation by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the shooting was justified and the investigation is considered closed.
According to the report, around noon on the day of the shooting, Black Hawk County Communications Center received a call from a physician at Mercy One Hospital in Cedar Falls who said that Piazza had visited the hospital for anxiety treatment, but left angry and talking about killing something.
Waterloo officers along with an Elevate counselor went to Piazza's residence on Harman Avenue to conduct a welfare check. They found him traveling to a Casey's convenience store with a handgun in his waistband. Officers decided not to confront Piazza at that time.
His wife said that after he returned home he told her if the police arrived there would be a shootout, according to the report.
Around 2:10 p.m., Piazza went to a liquor store near his house, and threatened the clerk when he was offered change for his whiskey bottle, the report said.
Around 2:50 p.m., the Waterloo Communications Center received a 911 call from an employee at a local automotive clinic. The caller reported that Piazza had entered the shop and demanded to see the owner. Piazza had put a gun to the caller's head, fired a round off in the shop, and told him to call the owner "if you don't want to die today," according to the report.
Piazza left after that saying he was coming back with an AR-15. When he returned to the shop later, he shattered glass in a door trying to get back inside.
Multiple Waterloo police officers were dispatched Piazza's home. When the BearCat arrived at around 3 p.m., an officer used the vehicle's PA system to order Piazza to exit the house with his hands in view. Shortly after the announcement, the officer said he saw Piazza pointing a shotgun directly at him. He took cover behind the vehicle and announced over radio that Piazza was aiming his shotgun.
At that time, officer Keaton Northup fired a single shot from his service rifle. Based on crime scene investigations, the bullet struck Piazza in the head and killed him.
The investigation also revealed many guns and ammunition, including an AR-15 with armor piercing rounds, in Piazza's home. A subsequent autopsy of Piazza revealed that he had a BAC of .13 and had THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, in his system at the time of his death.
Ryan Magalhães is a reporter for the Register. Reach them at rmagalhaes@dmreg.com.
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