By Lindsay Press and Hank Russell
A Nassau County police officer was cleared in the shooting death of a Massapequa man who was armed with three weapons. New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Office of Special Investigation (OSI) released its report on April 3.
The OSI looked into the death of David Clements, who died on February 2, 2024 following an encounter with the Nassau County Police Department (NCPD). After a thorough investigation, which included review of footage from body-worn cameras, audio from 911 calls, interviews with witnesses and an involved officer, and comprehensive legal analysis, OSI concluded that the officer’s actions were justified under New York law.
On the evening of February 2, 2024, NCPD officers responded to two 911 calls reporting a suicidal person armed with a gun at a house on Stone Boulevard in Massapequa. Upon arrival, officers surrounded the house before retreating to the street in front of the house after hearing what sounded like someone racking a firearm inside.
Clements came out of the house through the front door armed with what appeared to be two pistols and pointed one in the direction of the officers and the other against his head. Clements then briefly went back into the house and when he came back outside, he was armed with what appeared to be a third pistol with a mounted flashlight. He pointed the pistol at the officers and ignored their repeated demands to drop his weapons.
Clements walked toward the officers with the weapon pointed at them, and an officer discharged his service weapon in response, striking Clements, who was declared dead at the scene. Police recovered three BB guns at the scene, all of which looked like real firearms.
Under New York’s justification law, the OSI said, a police officer may use deadly physical force when the officer reasonably believes it to be necessary to defend against the use of deadly physical force by another. In this case, officers were responding to 911 calls reporting a suicidal individual with a gun.
“Under these circumstances, given the law and the evidence, a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the officer’s use of deadly physical force against Mr. Clements was justified, and therefore OSI determined that criminal charges would not be pursued in this matter,” the OSI stated.
Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said he was satisfied with the outcome of the investigation.
“We are pleased to see that a thorough investigation by the Attorney General’s Office has confirmed what we have believed all along: the actions of our officers during this incident were legally justified and necessary to protect their own lives,” he said in a statement. “No police officer wants to be forced to use deadly physical force. And we share the sadness felt by the family of David Clements that he lost his life. But the men and women of the Nassau County Police Department are the best trained and prepared police officers in the country. And we will continue to support them and pray that they all make it home safely at the end of their shift every day.”