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Sergeant, deputy who fatally shot Jordyn Hansen in Otsego won't face criminal charges

Sheriff: Deputies fatally shoot man with knife who was "having mental health challenges" in Otsego
Sheriff: Deputies fatally shoot man with knife who was "having mental health challenges" in Otsego 06:12

ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Wright County Attorney's Office will not file criminal charges against the sergeant and deputy who were involved in the shooting death of Jordyn Hansen this summer in the northwest metro.

Sgt. Jeffrey McMackins and Dep. Leland Wilkinson fired their service weapons, killing 21-year-old Hansen in the early morning hours of Aug. 7 after they said he "physically threatened" them with a knife. Law enforcement had been called to an Otsego residence because Hansen had reportedly threatened his family and himself.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension reported that Hansen initially told law enforcement that he would go to a hospital for evaluation, but then "ran into the kitchen and grabbed a knife" and fled into the neighborhood.

McMackins, Wilkinson and two other Wright County Sheriff's deputies soon found Hansen in a backyard. The two other deputies were unable to subdue Hansen with their stun guns. Squad car video then showed Hansen "running towards Deputy Wilkinson" with a knife. Wilkinson and McMackins opened fire, fatally wounding Hansen, who was later pronounced dead at a Twin Cities hospital.

None of the sheriff's office members were wearing body cameras, and a squad car only captured a portion of the encounter.

The county attorney's office said in a statement released Monday that the "actions of Sgt. McMackins and Deputy Wilkinson were completely justified and appropriate under the facts and circumstances of this case." 

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