Months later, man shot by Cedar Rapids police arrested

CEDAR RAPIDS - Kyle Orth drove up to 30 mph in reverse in a high-performance BMW, then 'rapidly accelerated” forward at two Cedar Rapids police officers, prompting them to open fire when he ignored their orders to surrender, an investigation released Friday shows.

Sixty-eight days after that March 29 episode, Orth, 27, was charged Friday with five counts including drunken driving and eluding.

After a court appearance, he was released on his own recognizance.

Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden, who reviewed the incident after it was investigated by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, absolved the Cedar Rapids officers who injured Orth. Officers Jeremy Depies and Brandon Tinta were taken off administrative leave Friday and will be returned to regular duty, police said.

'I have concluded that Officers Tinta and Depies were justified in using deadly force in their encounter with Kyle Russell Orth and that it was reasonable for them to believe that such force was necessary,” Vander Sanden wrote.

Vander Sanden's report paints a detailed picture of what transpired that night, relying heavily on video from a squad car dashboard camera.

His report does not explain why it took nearly 10 weeks to bring charges, and authorities would not release the video because the county attorney's office cited it as evidence in the case. Vander Sanden declined to be interviewed Friday. The DCI - often called in to conduct independent investigations of officer-involved shootings - turned over their report to the county attorney's office on May 15.

Orth, of Cedar Rapids, faces charges of assault on a peace officer with a dangerous weapon; interference with official acts while attempting to inflict serious injury; drunken driving and two counts of eluding.

Neither Orth nor his attorney, Thomas J. Viner, commented.

The night of the shooting, Orth was driving an orange BMW M4 he said he borrowed with permission from Zimmerman Auto Center, where he worked as a salesman.

In an earlier interview with The Gazette, Orth denied he was driving toward the officers.

'If I was driving at them in an aggressive manner, at the minimum, I would have hit their car,” Orth said days after the shooting. 'Honestly ... the only thing I was worried about, up until when I got shot, was how am I going to explain backing into a pole to Zimmerman's.”

He was shot in a knee, biceps and shoulder.

According to the complaint, Orth was spotted speeding and running a red light at First Avenue and College Drive early March 29.

Tinta and Depies saw the BMW on First Avenue near 10th Street NE a short time later.

Court documents state the officers followed Orth when he turned north onto 10th Street and saw him accelerate through a red light at 10th Street and A Avenue NE.

Vander Sanden said in his report that the officers activated their lights and sirens and began pursuing Orth. However, they broke off the chase when Orth drove northbound into southbound traffic on Coe Road, a one-way street. He was found a short time later sitting in the 800 block alley between Center Point Road and Daniels Street.

The report states that when the police lights and sirens were activated again, Orth backed down the alley before hitting a utility pole.

Vander Sanden wrote that the officers got out of the squad car, drew their guns and ordered him to put his hands up.

But Orth accelerated directly at Officer Tinta,” the report stated, just 15 feet away. Both officers opened fire.

'The headlights to the vehicle were functional and there was no reason Orth could not have seen officer Tinta, who was standing directly in front of his vehicle.” Vander Sanden wrote.

Orth admitted drinking 'five to seven beers” beforehand, the findings show. He was ordered to complete a substance abuse program and not drive a vehicle and report to the Linn County Jail within five days for fingerprinting.