SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Jan. 10, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — Two Salt Lake City police officers accused of not rendering first aid to a dying victim of domestic violence in November 2020 have been cleared of wrongdoing.
The Salt Lake City Police Department on Tuesday released an internal affairs investigation report, which found no policy violations by the two officers involved in the fatal stabbing on Nov. 13, 2020.
Officers responded about 6 p.m. that evening to the Covey Apartments, 239 E. South Temple, where 911 callers had reported a domestic dispute in process, police said.
Officers arrived to find Ryan Outlaw, 39, inside the elevator of the apartment complex, lying on the ground with blood on the front of his shirt, police said.
Outlaw’s girlfriend, Fernanda Tobar, let officers into the apartment building but told them she didn’t know what happened, police said. One of the officers called for paramedics while the other interviewed Tobar.
Outlaw was in critical condition when he was transported by ambulance to University of Utah Hospital, where he later died, police said. Tobar was later charged with homicide in Outlaw’s death.
Police say media coverage of the incident raised concerns that the officers failed to provide life-saving measures to Outlaw, and that those actions were racially motivated.
“Based on the findings in this report, it was reasonable for the officers to believe they could not provide adequate scene security and render first aid simultaneously, and therefore, called for additional resources in the form of a medical response team,” Police Chief Mike Brown said.
“We grieve the death of Ryan Outlaw. The actions of Fernanda Tobar the night she stabbed and killed Mr. Outlaw are reminders of the trauma and dangers associated with domestic violence.”
Brown said the two officers “found themselves in a very dynamic, dangerous and emotionally charged situation” and “performed professionally, reasonably and within our department’s policies.”
