The Fairfax County police officer who fatally shot an unarmed motorist in 2009 has been fired for improperly using deadly force, the police department confirmed Tuesday.
Officer Tawny Wright, a police spokeswoman, said Officer David Ziants was dismissed on May 6, after an internal investigation found that he was “not in compliance with departmental policies” when he shot and killed David Masters.
Officers were responding to a report of a theft at a business on the 8800 block of Richmond Highway on Nov. 13, 2009, then tried to stop a suspect vehicle – which was Masters’ – nearby, according to police. Masters continued to move forward and Ziants thought he reached for a gun and fired. Masters did not have a weapon.
Wright said department policies allow an officer to use deadly force only if the officer believes there is an “imminent threat” of death or serious injury to the officer or other people. The departmental review found that those conditions didn’t exist when Masters was killed.
Fairfax County prosecutors have cleared Ziants of criminal wrongdoing. A Justice Department investigation of the incident continues.
