Results of investigation into fatal shooting by South Bend police officer to be released next week

SOUTH BEND — The results of the investigation into the fatal shooting of Eric Logan by a South Bend police officer will be announced next week.

Special Prosecutor Ric Hertel will announce his findings March 6 at 11 a.m. at the County-City Building in South Bend. Indiana State Police Superintendent Doug Carter will join Hertel. 

Hertel, the Ripley County prosecutor, was appointed to review the case in July after St. Joseph County Prosecutor Ken Cotter stepped aside, saying he wanted to “avoid any appearance of impropriety, conflict of interest or influence."

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Shortly after he was appointed, Hertel said he would explore three options: to file charges against then-Sgt. Ryan O’Neill, to convene a grand jury to consider charges or to take neither of those steps and submit a report to St. Joseph Circuit Judge John Broden.

“I understand that whatever decision I make, people will question it, and that’s OK,” Hertel said at the time. “At the end, there will be some sort of resolution to this.”

The shooting drew national attention because of the presidential run of then-Mayor Pete Buttigieg, as he faced questions about diversity in the police force, use of force and related issues in South Bend. The South Bend Fraternal Order of Police also criticized Buttigieg for saying “systemic racism” has stained the history of American law enforcement.

The announcement will be slightly later than Hertel previously indicated, having said he hoped it would come by February. Earlier this month, Hertel told The Tribune that announcing the results of the investigation by the end of February was still “a realistic time frame."

Hertel, a Republican, will now announce his results three days after Super Tuesday, a critical day in the Democratic presidential primary race that will decide a large share of delegates.

Harvey Mills, president of the South Bend FOP, said in an email Friday that both the union and O'Neill "are in the dark as to the outcome" of the investigation.

Logan, 54, was shot and killed June 16 by O’Neill, in the parking lot of the downtown Central High Apartments. Police have said the officer responded to a report of someone breaking into cars, and opened fire after Logan approached him with a knife.

The shooting sparked tension over policing and race relations in South Bend. O’Neill, who resigned in July, did not have his body camera activated during the encounter.