GREELEY, Colo. — A former LaSalle police officer convicted of manslaughter in connection with the 2023 shooting death of a man at a Family Dollar store was sentenced Friday to prison.
A Weld County judge sentenced Erik Hernandez to six years in the Colorado Department of Corrections.
Prosecutors said Hernandez shot and killed Juston Reffel in the parking lot of a Family Dollar store during a suspicious vehicle call on May 3, 2023.
According to our partners at The Denver Post, Hernandez and another officer parked a unit behind the suspicious vehicle and entered the store, trying to locate the driver.
Hernandez left the store and encountered Reffel, who placed the vehicle in reverse and left the parking spot.
Hernandez then fired four shots, hitting Reffel in the torso. He later died at the hospital.
Hernandez was indicted on one count of second-degree murder but agreed to plead guilty to manslaughter after accepting a plea deal.
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