A federal grand jury in San Diego returned a two-count indictment charging former San Diego Sheriff’s Deputy Aaron Russell for fatally shooting Nicholas Bils on May 1, 2020, officials stated.
Russell is charged with depriving Bils of his right to be free from officers using excessive force and with discharging a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.
If convicted, Russell faces up to life in prison. He is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The indictment alleges that Russell, while acting as a San Diego Sheriff’s Deputy, shot Bils after Bils had escaped from a California Parks vehicle and was running away from law enforcement officers who were chasing him.
Without warning Bils or his fellow officers, Russell fired five shots at Bils, who was unarmed, as he ran away. One or more of the shots hit Bils in the back and caused his death. None of the other officers on the scene fired a shot or drew a weapon.
Assistant U.S. Attorney C. Seth Askins for the Southern District of California, Special Litigation Counsel Michael J. Songer and Trial Attorney Lia Rettammel of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section are prosecuting the case.