Omaha Police chief defends officer’s use of force seen in video of fatal shooting
Victim died after officer shot him eight times; OPD says incident started with traffic stop for expired plates
OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - Omaha Police held a news conference Wednesday to review video and details about the events that led to the shooting death of a man this weekend.
Steven Phipps Jr., 22, died after he was shot by an OPD officer during a foot pursuit on Saturday evening. Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said during Wednesday’s update that Phipps had fled a traffic stop initiated over the expired plates on his Monte Carlo.
Confirming Phipps’ weapon was legally registered, the chief said that if Phipps had remained in his vehicle and declared he was carrying a legal firearm, he would have simply been issued a ticket.
During the news conference, police showed OPD video — captured on the officers’ body-worn cameras as well as the cruiser camera — in addition to area surveillance footage.
“We don’t know what Mr. Phipps’ intent was; but when the gun was pointed at him and he had it in his hand, the officer is authorized to defend himself,” Schmaderer said.
Warning: Video and images in this report may be disturbing to some viewers.
Schmaderer said Phipps’ family was shown the video privately at 10 a.m. Wednesday. He said it was the most emotional meeting he’s had in his office to date.
“They’re obviously devasted,” he said during the news conference at 11:30 a.m.
FAMILY REACTION
Family of man killed in Omaha Police shooting say he was targeted, afraid
Steven Phipps Jr.'s family say he was targeted by police and that he was afraid — a fear others say is contagious in North Omaha.
The officers involved in the incident — Noah Zendejas, who has been on the force for 3.5 years; and Alex Atkinson, who has been an officer for just under five years — were interviewed Tuesday. Neither officer has had any prior disciplinary actions regarding the use of force.
Schmaderer said Wednesday that what the officers said in their interviews was consistent with what they saw on their body cameras: a gun in the suspect’s right hand.
OPD said Zendejas yelled “stop” three times before firing eight shots at Phipps in less than three seconds. The officers said Phipps had a gun pointed at the officers, creating an imminent threat.
Atkinson did not fire his weapon.
Schmaderer told 6 News that Officer Zendejas considered many things during the 10-second chase through the lot: why the gun was in the front pocket of the hoodie during the traffic stop — and now in the suspect’s right hand.
Phipps didn’t toss it.
Suspects ditching a gun during a pursuit happens all the time, according to the chief.
Instead, Phipps still had it in his hand as he jumped the fence and only dropped it after being shot.
The chief said he wasn’t alarmed by the number of shots fired by Zendejas.
“When we train, we train to shoot until they feel the threat is gone. And oftentimes you will have that. It’s not like in the movies; it really isn’t,” he said. “... I have yet to see (a shooting) that isn’t shocking.”
The chief said OPD’s use of force policy authorizes deadly force if there is a threat of serious bodily injury or death to the officer; or to defend the life of another.
The incident remains under investigation. Nebraska State Patrol and the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office is assisting County Attorney Don Kleine with a criminal investigation.
A grand jury will be convened to investigate the death, per Nebraska state law on in-custody deaths.
The grand jury and Kleine’s office will weigh in on whether any criminal charges are pursued.
A LOOK AT THE DATA
OPD reported Wednesday that there have been five officer-involved shootings this year; four of them have been fatal. In 2023, there were seven such shootings, four of them fatal.
He said OPD tries to control those variables through training and by use of less lethal options.
“We can minimize variables when compliance simply takes place,” he said.
The chief also stressed his concerns about the rising number of guns among the population.
Schmaderer said 2023 was the highest number on record nationally, despite police reform measures enacted following Ferguson, Mo., in 2015 and after the death of George Floyd in Minnesota in 2020.
He said the number of guns seized has also gone up, and at a rate that directly correlates with those OIS numbers. Noting that the number of guns seized in 2023 was an all-time high for Omaha, the chief said he wants to work with community partners to bring the city’s numbers back below the national trend lines.
“Most of the time, many many years, Omaha has been opposite of the national narrative,” Schmaderer said, noting that was not the case in 2016, 2023, and 2024.
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INCIDENT TIMELINE
According to previous police reports, the officer-involved shooting happened after the two OPD officers performed a traffic stop at 5:45 p.m. Saturday just south of 31st Street and Ames Avenue.
Phipps was driving and immediately got out of the vehicle after the officers pulled him over, prompting the officers to order him to “stay in the car.”
The officers are seen on police video making that request more than once: “Hey — stay in the car. Stay in the car. What are you doing? Stay in the car. What are you doing?”
For some reason, Phipps ran through a nearby empty lot and climbed over a fence near the Metro Area Transit Center.
Surveillance video shows him pulling a handgun from his front as he jumps the fence.
Police have said that Phipps’ grabbing motion was caught on OPD body-worn camera video and that one of the officers shot at — and hit — Phipps. During Wednesday’s news conference, police said Officer Zendejas began firing his weapon as Phipps was falling from the fence.
Police said Wednesday that the fatal shot entered Phipps’ shoulder, traveled through his chest, and then into his stomach. He was taken by ambulance to Nebraska Medical Center, where he died.
Neither officer was injured. Officer Zendejas was placed on administrative leave.
OPD said a passenger in Phipps’ vehicle at the time of the stop was later located by police after that person walked away from the scene.
In the days following the shooting, OPD combated rumors that Phipps had been shot in the back. Police said Monday that the autopsy showed that wasn’t the case, and Chief Schmaderer said they showed the family a photo of his back to confirm that to them.
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Producer Zane Culjat contributed to this coverage.
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