Aaron Russell, 23, is charged in the May 1 death of Nicholas Bils, 36. Russell is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday morning in downtown San Diego.
A San Diego County sheriff’s deputy who shot an unarmed detainee in May as the man ran from authorities outside the downtown city jail has been charged with second-degree murder, the district attorney’s office said Monday.
Aaron Russell, 23, is charged in the May 1 death of Nicholas Bils, 36. Russell, who resigned from the Sheriff’s Department in the days after the shooting, is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday morning in San Diego County Superior Court.Russell was arrested Monday and jailed. His bail was set at $1 million. He had been with the department about 18 months at the time of the shooting.San Diego County Dist. Atty.
“When a life is taken, we must make decisions based in facts and law, and not ones that are influenced by the status of the accused as a peace officer nor the status of the victim,” Stephan said. “These decisions must be made solely in the interest of justice and not based on favoritism nor public opinion. Every person must be accountable under the law.”Bils’ mother, Kathleen Bils, and her attorney did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.
According to San Diego police, Bils escaped from a California State Parks ranger’s car May 1 just outside a vehicle gate to the San Diego Central Jail.Bils apparently made his escape by slipping at least one wrist from his handcuffs, then reaching out the open window of the car to open the door from the outside, San Diego Police Homicide Lt. Matt Dobbs said at the time.
Russell and another deputy were on their way into work at the jail when they saw the escape and chased Bils, who was running toward vehicles stopped in traffic, said Dobbs and Homicide Capt. Richard Freedman.Figueroa and Riggins write for the San Diego Union-Tribune.6:12 PM, Jul. 13, 2020:
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