Columbus officers cleared in killing of knife-wielding assailant

June 10, 2014

June 10--A Franklin County grand jury has cleared three Columbus police officers who shot and killed a knife-wielding man at a Far West Side apartment complex last fall.

On May 30, the grand jury declined to indict Sgt. John Frenz and Officers Dustin McKee and Don Alderman in the Nov. 17 fatal shooting of Jason D. White, 31. White was killed while confronting officers in the Saddlebrook Apartments complex near Hilliard-Rome and Roberts roads.

Police first were called to the neighboring Bayside Commons Apartments at 5424 Tretorn Dr. shortly after 5 a.m. A woman told officers that White had entered her unlocked apartment and was stroking a knife in his hand.

White had left the apartment when Alderman arrived about 5:15 a.m. Alderman tried to subdue White with a Taser and then shot at him, authorities said.

White jumped a fence between the apartment complexes and, still armed with a knife, encountered Frenz and McKee, who shot at him in separate confrontations. White's family told police that he had mental-health issues.

The actions of the three officers also are being reviewed by the Police Division to determine whether they conformed to police policy.

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Copyright 2014 - The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio

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