District attorney's office determines officers will not face charges in shooting at Denver gas station

Following an investigation, Denver District Attorney John Walsh says no charges will be filed against two law enforcement officers who were involved in a shooting with a suspect carrying a fake gun.

The shooting took place on June 2 at a Sinclair gas station on Santa Fe Drive after officers tracked a stolen traffic control truck to the site. The truck had an active GPS device and an internal camera that showed the suspect, later identified as Joshua Erwin Jackson. According to the DA's office, camera footage showed that Jackson had what appeared to be a black firearm in his right hand.

After parking the truck at the gas station, Jackson walked to the south side of the store. An Adams County deputy and a Colorado State Patrol trooper arrived in separate vehicles and reportedly ordered Jackson to get on the ground. He ran inside, and law enforcement stayed outside and watched Jackson through the glass doors because they did not want to put the store's employees at risk in a possible confrontation.

Authorities say Jackson pulled what they believed to be a firearm from his pocket, and they shouted for him to drop it.

According to investigators, Jackson walked down the aisle and appeared to raise the weapon toward the deputy, who then fired at Jackson. The replica weapon, which was later discovered to be a large lighter designed to look like a handgun, went sliding down the aisle, and store footage appears to show Jackson moving along the floor towards it. When he reached the end of the aisle near the replica gun, both the deputy and trooper fired at him.

Jackson sustained multiple gunshot wounds during the incident and was taken to an area hospital for treatment.

In a release on Friday, Walsh's office said it determined the law enforcement officers had a reasonable belief that they were in imminent danger from Jackson and that they were justified in using deadly force to defend themselves.