Wrongful-death suit filed in shooting by deputies

Wrongful-death suit filed in shooting by deputies

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Story Published: Aug 19, 2008 at 6:19 PM PDT

Story Updated: Nov 21, 2008 at 12:54 AM PDT

By Associated Press

TACOMA, Wash. (AP) - The daughter of a man shot dead by Pierce County sheriff's deputies three years ago has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the county and the two officers.

The lawsuit by Katie Strobe claims deputies Rustin Wilder and Shaun Derby used excessive force when they shot her father, 51-year-old Steven Strobe.

The lawsuit in Pierce County Superior Court does not specify damages, but Strobe asked for at least $300,000 when she filed a claim with the county in 2006.

The shooting occurred in August of 2005 outside her father's home near the Key Peninsula community of Vaughn.

Deputies were called by a man who claimed Strobe had attacked him with a shovel.

Investigators said afterward that the deputies first shot Strobe with a stun gun, but he then threatened them with a utility knife and moved toward another deputy before he was shot.

An autopsy ruled that Strobe had used the knife to cut himself, and that he had alcohol and drugs in his system.

Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney Gerald Horne ruled in October 2005 that the deputies were legally justified in killing Strobe.

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