County reviews facts of ‘suicide by cop’ shooting

Justin Hoey wasn’t going back to prison. He planned to die.

The only question was whether he’d kill himself or force Henderson police officers to do it.

During the lengthy standoff between Hoey, 36, and Henderson officers in the early morning on Nov. 7, 2012, Hoey kept a handgun on himself for hours --- under his chin, at his chest or at his head.

“He talked about having the guts to do it himself,” testified Henderson Detective Chad Mitchell, the lead detective investigating Hoey’s death.

Hoey’s ex-girlfriend, Ariella Kidd, told police that Hoey talked in prior weeks about killing himself through suicide by cop. The night before his death, he broke into her home and stole her car. When she met him in a parking lot to confront him, he rammed her truck with a Jeep and punched her.

A short time later, Hoey pointed a 9mm handgun at her and said he would die that night. He ran away.

Kidd called 911. The officers quickly located Hoey near St. Rose Parkway and Eastern Avenue. He continued to run, but fell into a 15-foot embankment adjoining a wash.

Just before 2 a.m., Hoey pulled the gun from his temple and pointed it at SWAT officers. Three officers, Tyler Bailey, Justin Dera and Jesse Lujan, opened fire from their Colt M4 Commando rifles, killing him.

The new information was revealed in a Friday hearing into Hoey’s shooting. It was Clark County’s third fact-finding review, an informal process that replaced the oft-criticized coroner’s inquest earlier this year.

The new process does not have a jury, will not have testimony from citizens or the involved officers and is not legally binding. Instead of a courtroom, the hearing was held in the Clark County Commission chambers.

Investigators later discovered Hoey was drunk and intoxicated on methamphetamine during the stand-off. Hoey had a lengthy criminal history in California and had arrived in Las Vegas just a few months before his death.

This was the first fact-finding review involving Henderson police. The first two reviews, which looked at the shooting deaths of Stanley Gibson and Daniel Hathorne, involved Las Vegas police.

County commissioners will hear a report Tuesday from the county manager’s staff about the police fatality fact-finding review process. When commissioners approved the new policy in January, they requested a follow-up report on how the change has worked after the first three reviews.

Unlike the inquest process, normally only the lead investigator testifies and no firsthand witnesses are called. Friday’s hearing relied solely on testimony from Detective Mitchell.

Commission Chairman Steve Sisolak said he has attended two of the reviews in person.

“I think that it’s transparent,” he said. “I think it does allow for questions to be asked and for there to be a sense of closure for the family and I think it allows there to be a conclusion.”

Reporter Ben Botkin contributed to this report. Contact reporter Mike Blasky at mblasky@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0283. Follow @blasky on Twitter.