An investigative report released by James’ office determined prosecutors would not be able to disprove that the deputy, John Rosello, believed the car was about to hit him or that firing into the car was a way to prevent himself from being harmed.
Rosello, of the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office, fatally shot Dhal Apet, 17, and Lueth Mo, 15, as he was investigating the burglary of a smoke shop in the Syracuse area and responding to a call about people transferring items between two vehicles.
Surveillance video of the shooting previously released by the attorney general’s office shows the deputy use his SUV’s front bumper to pin one of the cars into a row of bushes. Rosello then gets out of the vehicle, stands for a moment in front of the car Apet and Mo are riding in, then steps out of the way with his firearm apparently aimed at the car as it moves forward.
My impression from watching the video linked in the article is that the driver of the car did appear to be willing to hit the cop in order to get away. Unless the cop shot at the car after it already drove past him (which could presumably be determined by looking at the angle at which the bullets hit the car) I think that this really does look like self-defense.