Appleton police respond to an incident on the 1500 block of Birchwood Avenue in Appleton Aug. 12, 2022. PC: Fox 11 Online
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Appleton and one of its police officers deny any wrongdoing in a response to a federal civil wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of a man killed by an officer.
Officers Bryce Rudebeck and Tony Shuman shot at Daniel Pesavento in his N. Birchwood Avenue driveway Aug. 12, 2022. Pesavento, 29, was taken to the hospital, where he died. After an investigation, the officers were cleared and no charges were filed against them. Although Shuman was investigated for his role in the incident, the federal lawsuit notes he fired one shot and missed.
Pesavento’s family filed the lawsuit in May, claiming “Rudebeck’s use of deadly force was unnecessary, unreasonable and excessive.” In addition, it states, “At the time he was killed, Daniel did not pose an imminent threat of death or bodily harm to Rudebeck or anyone else when Rudebeck opened fire on him with his military-grade rifle from 100 feet away and behind a police car.”
The city’s response was filed Tuesday. Click here to see the PDF file.
Appleton does “admit that any and all of the complained of actions attributed to Defendant Rudebeck were taken in the course and scope of that employment. As further answer, deny any wrongdoing, improper conduct or violation of Plaintiffs’ rights by these answering Defendants as alleged by Plaintiff or otherwise,” the reply states.
It also states the city denies “any wrongdoing, improper conduct or violation of Plaintiffs’ rights by these answering Defendants as alleged by Plaintiff or otherwise and therefore deny the statutes’ applicability to the claims being asserted by Plaintiff.”
Among the legal affirmative defenses cited: “these answering defendants are protected from suit by immunities including qualified immunity.”
Appleton and Rudebeck ask for the case to be dismissed.
A scheduling conference is set for Aug. 29.
Witness video released by DOJ appeared to show Pesavento raising the gun to his own head just before being shot.
At the same time, the report says Rudebeck “became fearful for the safety of his life, his fellow officers’ lives, and the public’s lives.” He then “took the safety off his rifle and fired multiple rounds, which he believed was approximately five (5) at Pesavento to stop the threat.”
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