Shooting of Autumn Steele

Incident

Autumn Steele had just been released from jail after being arrested for assaulting her husband, Gabriel; she was not supposed to be at the family residence unless escorted by police. On January 6, 2015, Officer Jesse Hill was dispatched to the Steele home in response to a domestic-disturbance call.

Police said when Hill arrived, Autumn was screaming at and attacking Gabriel (who was holding their young child). Hill said the family dog bit him as he was trying to protect the husband and child. He said he tried shooting the dog twice, but he slipped. One of his bullets hit Autumn Steele in her torso; she later died of her injuries. A neighbor told a local newspaper the officer was trying to break up the Steele's argument and was startled by the couple's dog.

During the course of the investigation, the Steeles' German Shepherd was confiscated by the police department under a search warrant and was placed in the city's dog pound for observation. The dog was later deemed "not vicious" and returned. Officer Hill was treated for at least one dog bite.

Objections To Police Account

• Witnesses said they never saw the Steele's dog bite Officer Hill;

• Steele's husband said Officer Hill unholstered his weapon as soon as he got out of his police vehicle and saw the dog;

• The family claims that Hill was never directly threatened by the dog, but reacted only out of an irrational fear of the animal. They also say Autumn Steele's death was not an accident because, they say, Hill intentionally drew his weapon and intentionally fired it in the direction of a human being who died.

Judicial response

On February 27, 2015, Des Moines County Attorney Amy Beavers provided a 7-page letter to the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigations stating that she would not prosecute Hill under manslaughter charges. The Associated Press reported that Bevers said her decision was supported by body camera evidence, witness statements, and reports from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. Hill had to make an instantaneous decision as the threat was occurring, Bevers said. Adam J. Klein, an attorney who represents Steele's 7-year-old son, said in a news release that Bevers' statement made it appear she reached her "determination by simply ignoring Iowa law".

Klein said Bevers ignored a part of Iowa law that says involuntary manslaughter, as an aggravated misdemeanor, is punishable "...[w]hen the person unintentionally causes the death of another person by the commission of an act in a manner likely to cause death or serious injury."

The Steele family and transparency-advocacy groups have pushed for all body-camera footage related to the incident to be released, including by pursuing legal action.

Attorneys representing the City of Burlington and the Burlington Police Department filed an appeal to dismiss the open records violation case against them in January 2017. Administrative Law Judge Karen Doland dismissed the appeal exclaiming that the case has merit and should be ruled. The hearing will be held on April 19th.

Other response

Unsubstantiated bomb threats were made to Burlington City Council members in December. Police say they are linked to the shooting.

On November 16, 2016, a lawsuit was filed by the family of Steele against the City of Burlington and officer Hill in response to the shooting.