The recommendation of the special prosecutor was that former South Bend Police Sergeant Ryan O’Neill should not face charges in the shooting death of Eric Logan.
O’Neill is still facing separate charges and was taken into custody Friday morning, after allegedly hiring a prostitute in the weeks prior to the Logan shooting.
Former Sgt. O’Neill faces charges of official misconduct, ghost employment, and public indecency.
Police Chief Scott Ruszkowski said an officer stepped forward with the information that led to the charges, and said the department continues to work on transparency and building relationships in the community.
South Bend Common Council President Tim Scott released the following statement:
The South Bend Police involved shooting of Eric Logan on Father’s Day, June 16th,
2019 was a tragedy to say the least. South Bend as community has lost and suffered
from the effects of the shooting and long wait as the Special Prosecutor conducted
his investigation.
The wait has been long; and we cannot heal as a community until today.
While the city administration, the police, this Common Council and this community
has given much thought to what happened that night, we know this, South Bend will
continue to heal, continue work to gain trust with each other, work to bring
meaningful and equitable quality-of-life to all our residents.
It is evident this city will always have a police department; it is evident there will be
interactions between police and residents. This council will work with the
Residents, Police and the Administration to make sure there is equity on all fronts of
our city government as well as working for the best police department.
We are committed to community policing where relationships and respect are built
between the best-well trained professional men and women we can find and the
citizens of South Bend.
The Fraternal Order of Police #36 issued the following statement:
Special Prosecutor Ric Hertel announced that the independent investigation into the incident that happened on June 16, 2019, found that former South Bend police officer Ryan O’Neill properly followed his training and the law when he defended his life from a man armed with an eight-inch hunting knife.
“Police officers never want to be put in the position where they have to use deadly force to defend their life — they want to come to work, protect their community, and go home to their families, just like everyone else,” Harvey Mills, South Bend Fraternal Order of Police lodge #36 President said. “That’s why condemning officers before the facts are known is wrong and can put both officers and the public in danger.”
The Special Prosecutor’s investigation also filed charges against former Officer O’Neill concerning unrelated allegations that took place several weeks prior to the June incident.
“These unrelated allegations, if true, are disappointing and would certainly be against department policy,” Mills said. “South Bend police officers know they have to constantly earn the trust of our community and are always held responsible for their actions.”
Ryan O’Neill resigned from the South Bend Police Department on July 15, 2019 and is no longer a FOP member. Questions should be directed to his attorney.
