The New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office has determined that a Manchester police officer’s use of deadly force during a June 2025 shooting at a local hotel was legally justified.
The incident occurred around 4:40 p.m. on June 21, when officers from the Manchester Police Department responded to a report that a guest at the Fairfield Inn on South Porter Street had refused to leave his room.
The man was identified as John Philip Tibbs, 50, of Alton.
When police made contact with Tibbs at the door to a hotel room, he pointed a pistol at three officers and fired multiple times, according to the attorney general’s office.
In response, Officer Anthony Shriber fired several shots, striking Tibbs in the stomach. Tibbs survived the gunshot wounds.
On Tuesday, the attorney general’s office concluded that Shriber’s use of deadly force was legally justified after an investigation.
The Hillsborough County Attorney’s Office has also filed criminal charges against Tibbs in connection with the incident. Those charges are currently pending.
A full investigative report on Shriber’s use of force will be released once all legal proceedings have concluded.
In nearly every case over at least the past three years, the attorney general’s office has ruled officers’ use of deadly force to be legally justified.
Under state law, officers are allowed to use lethal force as a last resort when they reasonably believe their lives or the lives of others are in danger.
