No indictment returned in Woodbury officer-involved shooting case

A Washington County grand jury declined to indict the three Woodbury police officers involved in a fatal shooting last summer at the Red Roof Inn.

The officers, 11-year veteran Anthony Ofstead, Stacey Krech, a five-year veteran of the force and Natalie Martin, who has been with the department for two years, shot Mark Eric Henderson in August 2012 during a chain of events that led to a standoff with an armed man who was later charged with numerous felonies. It was later determined that Henderson, who ran out of a Red Roof room, had been among several hostages.

The grand jury convened on Wednesday and returned its decision today.

Woodbury Public Safety Director Lee Vague thanked the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension for its investigation and the Ramsey County Attorney's Office for its review of the case.

"I appreciate the grand jury's analysis and I respect their conclusion," he said. "Today my thoughts go out to all those who are affected by this incident."

The case involving the officers was tried by Ramsey County prosecutors after the Washington County Attorney’s Office deferred the case to them to prevent any conflict of interest since the suspect, Demetrius Santrell Ballinger, is being prosecuted in Washington County.

According to a Ramsey County news release, it is generally standard procedure for cases involving police shootings that result in death to be presented to the grand jury for review.

The release states that details from the grand jury hearing are not available to the public.

Tags: crime and courts, news, crime