A just-released Rutland City police video of a fatal shootout that involved the son of a former longtime mayor shows the suspect firing at police.
The dashboard camera captured the incident that began with a short pursuit through a downtown shopping center plaza parking lot.
The shooting near the Walmart and Amtrak station in Rutland around 7 a.m. on Oct. 8 killed Christopher G. Louras, 33, the son of former longtime Rutland Mayor Christopher Louras.
Vermont Attorney General TJ Donovan and Rutland County State’s Attorney Rose Kennedy both announced last week that following separate reviews, they determined the actions of the four police officers who exchanged gunfire with the younger Louras were justified.
Both Rutland City Police and Vermont State Police have provided VTDigger with the video from the cruiser dash cam one of those officers, Sgt. Kenneth Mosher of the Rutland City Police Department.
The video starts about 90 minutes after police said Louras drove by and fired two shots into the Rutland City police station on Wales Street. The video shows Mosher pursuing the vehicle Louras was driving after it was spotted in the downtown shopping plaza.
In the video, Louras, while being pursued, can be seen firing from outside his driver’s side window on Mosher, who was driving behind him in the large parking lot. Mosher’s cruiser also strikes the rear of Louras’ vehicle.
The short chase ends near a set of railroad tracks on the outer edge of the parking lot.
“Mr. Louras got out of his car and fired further shots in the direction of Sgt. Mosher,” Donovan said at the press conference last week.
The four officers, while taking cover behind their vehicles returned fire, Donovan added.
“Mr. Louras fell to the ground, dropping the AR-15, he then stood up and was on the move again at which point he picked up and began to raise the rifle according to witnesses,” Donovan said. “The officers again fired at Mr. Louras, bringing him to the ground.”
Louras, who was shot multiple times, was taken to the Rutland Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, according to the attorney general.
