Two separate motor vehicle stops in New Hampshire earlier this year, both ending with police shooting the drivers, have been ruled legally justified, according to Attorney General John Formella.
In Dover, 28-year-old Moriah Infinjer was shot in the shoulder by Colin Burgess, a New Hampshire State Trooper, on April 13 during a traffic stop.
Because criminal charges have been filed against Infinjer, the Attorney General’s Office said it would not release further details about the incident until that case has been resolved.
In a separate incident on Feb 21, 26-year-old Levi Coltey was shot in the shoulder by Andrew Noorigian, a Derry police officer, after he mistakenly believed Coltey was holding a gun.
The incident began around 9:20 p.m. when Officer Collin Kennedy with the Derry police department attempted to stop Coltey’s car using lights and sirens.
Coltey drove for about forty seconds before stopping in a residential area along Scobie Pond Road.
Coltey remained stopped for approximately four minutes but refused to turn off his car or show his hands, according to the Attorney General’s report.
Kennedy, who was accompanied by a police canine, told Coltey that he was resisting arrest and that he was going to “get the dog.”
Coltey then drove away, initiating a brief pursuit involving multiple marked police vehicles.
Coltey later told investigators that his noncompliance stemmed from a previous encounter with police, during which he experienced physical abuse, leaving him generally “fearful and anxious around law enforcement.”
Over the next five minutes, Coltey traveled roughly two miles, committing several traffic infractions along the way.
At times, he slowed down and shouted to officers that he “didn’t do anything” and asked to be left alone.
During a time in the pursuit, Coltey’s car was moving slowly — less than ten miles per hour— when a pursuing police vehicle passed him and cut off his path.
His car became stuck in the snow on the roadside, bringing the chase to an end.
Noorigian then approached Coltey’s vehicle on foot, armed with a rifle.
Initially, his finger was off the trigger and the safety was on, but he ultimately fired a single shot at Coltey, thinking he was armed.
“When Officer Noorigian was at the driver’s window, Mr. Coltey quickly leaned over to the passenger area, and then pulled back to the driver’s seat and faced the officer,” the Attorney General’s report states. “Officer Noorigian, believing—incorrectly—that Mr. Coltey was pointing a handgun at him, quickly backed up and fired a single shot from the rifle that he held, striking Mr. Coltey in the shoulder.”
Formella found that although “the officer was incorrect that Mr. Coltey was armed and about to shoot him, his mistaken belief was reasonable.”
Coltey told investigators that he had turned toward the front passenger door in an attempt to leave the car and “go run on foot.”
Only about five seconds elapsed from Noorigian’s on-foot approach to Coltey’s stuck car to the shooting.
Coltey said he could not make out what the officer was saying and was “in a panic” and “scared and didn’t know what to do,” and that what occurred next “happened so fast.”
After being shot, he said he felt “very disassociated” and “kind of like in shock,” remaining in the car for about ten minutes until officers dragged him out to provide medical assistance.
So far this year, seven people have been shot in officer-involved incidents in New Hampshire, with two deaths.
Last year, police shot nine individuals statewide, and all but one of those encounters were fatal.
In every case, the attorney general concluded that the officers’ use of deadly force was legally justified.
