SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – October 19, 2015 (Gephardt Daily) – The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office says a Salt Lake City police officer was justified in using deadly force when he shot and killed an intruder inside a Salt Lake City family’s home earlier this year.
According to investigators, K-9 Officer Ben Hone was responding to an early morning burglary call on Roberta Avenue September 23 when he heard cries for help coming from a second nearby home.
Hone ran inside the house without back-up where he encountered 49-year-old, Robert Richard Berger holding badly wounded resident, Breann Lasley, at knifepoint.
Police say Hone ordered Berger to drop the weapon. When he failed to comply, Hone fired a single shot, fatally wounding Berger.
The deadly chain of events began shortly after midnight when Berger – a fugitive with an extensive criminal record – tried to force his way into a child’s bedroom window at 838 South Roberta Street. Police say the child’s parents drove Berger off, only to have him force his way into the home next door where he attacked and terrorized two sisters, one of whom managed to escape catching Officer Hone’s attention.
Brooke Adams, spokesperson for the Utah Department of Corrections, said Berger had just been released from prison on September 15 where he’d been serving time on a previous parole violation. He walked away from a half-way house a few days later and was considered a fugitive with an active warrant at the time of the shooting.
