Montezuma County District Attorney Christian Hatfield on Friday announced that law enforcement officers will not face charges after fatally shooting the man suspected of killing Cortez Police Sgt. Michael Moran.
Police and sheriff’s officials on Tuesday identified the officers involved in the shooting as Cortez Police Department Detective Stephon Lobato and Montezuma County Sheriff Sgt. Alexander Kennedy.
Cortez Police Department public information officer Kelly Codner and Sheriff Steve Nowlin provided the names of the involved officers to The Journal on Tuesday morning.
Sgt. Moran, 46, was gunned down during a routine traffic stop Nov. 29 in the 800 block of South Broadway Street in southwest Cortez.
The shooter, Jason Campbell, 44, of Ogden, Utah, was located “within minutes” about 1½ miles south of the traffic stop at Aces Storage off U.S. Highway 160/491, where he was shot and killed by law enforcement.
Sgt. Moran was laid to rest in Cortez on Wednesday, Dec. 6.
Montezuma County Sheriff Steven Nowlin said at the time that sheriff’s deputies and police officers were involved in the shootout that killed Campbell just outside city limits.
Hatfield, of the 22nd Judicial District, said the shooting was “legally justified” and officers could return to duty.
“After reviewing the investigation done by CBI, the 22nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office has determined that there will be no criminal charges filed in the officer-involved shooting that took place on Nov. 29, 2023 in Cortez, Colorado,” Hatfield said.
“Law Enforcement’s actions during this incident were legally justified, and all officers involved are free to return to duty. This incident represents a tragedy for all involved and the community as a whole,” he said. “The District Attorney’s Office appreciates the extremely thorough investigation conducted by CBI and the cooperation of the Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office and Cortez Police Department.”
During a phone call with The Journal, Hatfield said that he was not in possession of the investigation documents from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation but had met with CBI investigators.
The investigators gave a presentation outlining their investigation, and Hatfield said he based his decision on that presentation.
He also added that he wouldn’t wish for anyone in the public to view the video of the shooting, and that videos posted online by witnesses had been taken down.
“I don’t think it’s in anyone’s best interest to see that,” he said.
The CBI has released few details about the shooting.
On Dec. 8, the CBI said in a news release that Campbell began firing shots “almost immediately” after being pulled over on suspicion of reckless driving. Moran returned fire, but it didn’t stop the suspect from fleeing the scene, according to the release.
The CBI did not release a possible motive for the shooting. It also declined to say how many shots were fired, how many times Moran was shot or whether the suspect was hit by Moran’s return fire.
