TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
THe Lincoln County Deputy involved in the emergency response and subsequent shooting death of 28-year-old John Z. Moua on Dec. 10, 2021, on Shady Lane Ave. in the Town of Pine River has been cleared. The Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) investigated the incident and reviewed all of the evidence
According to a letter from Paul M. Ferguson, Assistant Attorney General with the Office of Open Government at the State of Wisconsin DOJ, “The Lincoln County District Attorney determined there is no basis to prosecute the law enforcement officer involved, and DCI is releasing its case file pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 175.47(5)(b).”
The officer who discharged his weapon in the incident has a 17-year career in law enforcement, with 10 of those years working for the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department.
The incident began when a family member called 911 the morning of Dec. 10, 2021, because Moua was acting “paranoid” and was holding a knife to his own throat and there were other family members in the home who might get hurt. The caller also said Moua had a history of drug abuse.
According to the investigation, the following transpired. Upon arrival, officers repeatedly pled with Moua to put down the knife. Officers did not have weapons drawn.
Then the situation escalated when Moua grabbed another person at the residence with the knife pointed toward that person’s chest and neck area, and the officer, fearing for that person’s life, he said, discharged his weapon, striking Moua.
The officer immediately began to perform life-saving measures. Emergency medical services personnel from the Merrill Fire Department also responded to the scene, but life-saving attempts were unsuccessful.