Park Police officers did not violate use of force policy, OIG investigation finds

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Virginia lawmakers are responding Tuesday after a federal investigation found that the two U.S. Park Police who shot and killed an unarmed man in Alexandria, did not violate the use of force policy. 

In 2017, 25-year-old Bijan Ghaisar was shot multiple times and killed by two USPP officers who said that Ghaisar had fled the scene of a fender-bender on the George Washington Parkway in Alexandra. Ghaisar's death became subject of a series of criminal investigations and lawsuits. The latest of which involved the job status of two officers who shot Ghaisar.  

Virginia's U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine condemned Bijan Ghaisar's killing on Tuesday, along with Rep. Don Beyer, who represents Alexandria, Va.

"The death of Bijan Ghaisar remains a great tragedy," the Democratic members of congress said on Tuesday. "Despite the OIG's findings that the officers who killed BIjan Ghaisar did not seemingly violate written U.S. Park Police policy and procedure in place at the time, it's clear this incident should never have occurred."

The two officers responsible for killing Ghaisar, Lucas Vinyard and Alejandro Amaya, sued the Department of Interior in July over whether the government was allowed to consider firing them over the shooting. Police unions backed Vinyard and Amaya's lawsuit.  

"The National Park Service and the Department of Interior have some explaining to do on the illegal actions they took against our police officers " the Fraternal Order of Police's labor committee said Tuesday. "... After seven long years and millions of taxpayer dollars wasted, the Interior department's office of the inspector general finally released a report concluding what we knew all along - Officers Lucas Vinyard and Alejandro Amaya acted appropriately and within policy." 

Sens. Warner, Kaine and Rep. Beyer said U.S. Park Police were more critical of the report, saying the Inspector General did not quickly hand over information about the shooting adding that the U.S. Park Police would need to follow reforms of department policies going forward. 

"U.S. Park Policy at the time of Bijan's killing was outdated and inconsistent with the goal of safeguarding lives," the members of congress said. "This report, which we first requested more than two years ago - underscores that these officers' actions would not have been acceptable under the DOI guidelines that govern vehicular pursuits today."