Charges dropped against Philadelphia officer who fatally shot Eddie Irizarry at traffic stop

A judge dismissed all charges Tuesday against a Philadelphia police officer who fatally shot a driver last month.

Mark Dial shot 27-year-old Eddie Irizarry through the rolled-up driver’s side window of Irizarry’s sedan during a traffic stop on Aug. 14.

Dial and his partner, Officer Michael Morris, say they had been pursuing Irizarry for driving erratically and turning the wrong way down a one-way street. Morris testified that Irizarry had a knife in his hand and had started to raise it as the officers approached.

During a hearing, Dial’s lawyers argued he acted in self-defense because he believed the knife Irizarry had was a gun. Brian McMonagle, one of his lawyers, said his client was justified in shooting as he was trying to take cover and had feared for his life during the incident.

“Every tragedy is not a crime,” McMonagle said.

Initial statements from the police department said Dial shot the driver outside the vehicle after he “lunged at” police with a knife, but the department later walked back these statements.

Still, McMonagle said the charges, which included manslaughter, official oppression and four other counts, never should have been filed given the evidence.

“I agree with you 100 percent,” Judge Wendy Pew responded before tossing all charges Tuesday, per the Associated Press.