Police shooting of Casper man was justified, DA will not bring charges

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No officers will be charged for a May police shooting that killed a Casper man after a traffic stop escalated and the man began driving himself and an officer into oncoming traffic on I-25.

During a press conference Friday, Casper police spokesperson Rebekah Ladd said that a Division of Criminal Investigation report reviewed by District Attorney Dan Itzen found the shooting was justified for the officer's safety and for the safety of others around the scene.

Officer Jake Bigelow shot and killed 42-year-old Casper resident Thomas Roeber in the early hours of May 6 while Roeber was driving himself and Bigelow the wrong direction on the interstate.

Bigelow and the other officer on the scene, Officer Andrew Linkowski, were conducting a traffic stop near East H and North Elma streets just before 4 a.m. on May 6 when the driver unexpectedly got out of the vehicle and stated he didn't have anything to do with the situation.

Ladd said Friday that the officers noticed there was a license plate violation on the vehicle, and were planning on conducting a stop when the car pulled over on its own. Casper Police Chief Keith McPheeters said during the press conference that the officers also noted the car’s occupants’ “unmistakable reaction” to seeing the police car, which made the officers suspicious.

During the stop, officers saw a backpack in the back of the vehicle and noted that Roeber gave a misspelling of his name after failing to produce identification or registration documents for the car. McPheeters said this added to the officers’ suspicion.

Roeber, who had been sitting in the passenger seat, moved behind the wheel while Bigelow tried to grab him. Roeber then reportedly pulled the officer into the vehicle and began driving, trying to flee the scene, when he entered I-25 by driving up an off-ramp.

Bigelow told Roeber to stop multiple times, and attempted to stop the car by putting it in park. This, according to police, only damaged the car's transmission while it was still driving. After 73 seconds in the car, Bigelow shot Roeber, then pulled the vehicle to the side of the interstate. Officers attempted life-saving measures on Roeber until an ambulance arrived approximately six minutes later.

Roeber was pronounced dead at Wyoming Medical Center.

“The officer does not have to wait to become a further victim before using deadly force,” a letter from Itzen reads. “Given what the officer had just gone through, it was reasonable for him to believe his life was still in danger.”

No criminal charges have been brought against the driver of the vehicle. Casper Police Chief Keith McPheeters said the driver was cooperative with the investigation.

According to Ladd, police searched the vehicle and found around an ounce of methamphetamine and two glass pipes.

Both Bigelow and Linkowski were placed on administrative leave following the shooting, as per the department’s policy. Neither officer reported any injuries.

Linkowski joined the force in Casper in December. McPheeters said Friday that Linkowski’s time on leave was relatively short, and he has since completed training and returned to the street.

Bigelow has been a senior officer at the department since March 2019. Before that, he worked as an officer in Mills, where he shot and killed a man in 2016 who had been shooting at neighbors’ houses in Casper. Then-District Attorney Mike Blonigen’s investigation into the shooting found it was justified.

McPheeters said Bigelow has been on restricted duty, working in the department’s office, but is set to return to active duty next week.