Ventnor police cleared in 2020 fatal shooting of Pa. man

The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office said Tuesday that three Ventnor police officers who opened fire on a man wielding a broken bottle near the marshes along busy Wellington Avenue in August 2020, fatally wounding him, will not face charges.

A state grand jury declined to indict the three officers, Michael Arena, Pierluigi Mancuso, and Robert Scarborough, in the death of Amir Johnson, 30, of Wilkes-Barre, the acting state attorney general, Matthew Platkin, said in a statement.

» READ MORE: Videos show police tried, and failed, to stun Pa. man before fatally shooting him in Ventnor confrontation

The shooting was investigated by the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability and presented to the grand jury. The investigation included “interviews of witnesses, collection of forensic evidence, review of video footage, and autopsy results from the medical examiner,” the statement said.

The grand jury finished deliberations Monday and voted “no bill,” meaning the grand jury determined that the actions of the officers should not result in charges against them.

Ventnor Police Chief Joe Fussner declined to comment beyond noting the officers were “cleared of any wrongdoing.”

“I”m just glad it’s over,” he said.

Family members of Johnson had said he had gone to Atlantic City with friends to boost his spirits after the death of his girlfriend.

He ended up in a confrontation with police along a busy street on the border with Atlantic City. A video of the encounter released by the state detailed steps the officers took in a failed effort to get Johnson to drop the broken bottle.

When officers responded to reports of a man behaving erratically, Johnson was “walking in and out of a marshy area along the roadway, while holding a broken glass bottle in his hand,” according to the attorney general’s statement.

Police said he had “self-inflicted lacerations on his arms and neck, and was bleeding from his neck.”

He refused offers of assistance and refused to drop the bottle, despite repeated requests, and continued to walk on the roadway.

In the video, Johnson can be heard cursing at the officers and at one point yelling, “Shoot me!”

One officer attempted to deploy a stun gun, but it wouldn’t work. After the stun gun failed, Johnson backed into a grassy area, then pivoted and began running toward Ventnor officers who were near the side of the road, and past two civilian vehicles where people were huddled inside.

“We don’t want to do this, man! Stop!” one officer is heard yelling at Johnson as he approaches. “Stop!” and “Drop the bottle!” they continue shouting. Johnson falls to the ground, then gets up and continues toward them.

When he surged toward officers, three fired at him. He died later at a hospital.

A 2019 law requires the Attorney General’s Office to conduct investigations of a person’s death that occurs during an encounter with a law enforcement officer acting in the officer’s official capacity or while the decedent is in custody. It requires that all such investigations be presented to a grand jury.

An officer may use deadly force in New Jersey when the officer reasonably believes it is immediately necessary to protect the officer or another person from imminent danger of death or serious bodily harm.

A friend of Johnson’s, Alhassan Abdulfattaah, who lives in the Bronx, New York City, previously told The Inquirer that Johnson had been feeling down after losing his fiancee. A prior girlfriend of Johnson’s, Kayla Drevenak of Wilkes-Barre, said Johnson’s most recent girlfriend had died of a drug overdose in July 2020.

Abdulfattaah said Johnson, who worked various temporary jobs, including helping people move, had grown up in the Bronx. Johnson returned to the Bronx in late July “to better his spirits up,” the friend said. Prior to the shooting, Abdulfattaah said, he and Johnson had gone with others to Atlantic City and gambled through the night at the Ocean Casino Resort. Atlantic City was a place where Johnson had good memories with his girlfriend, Abdulfattaah said, adding that by the time he and the others left, he thought Johnson’s “spirits were good.”