Racine County law enforcement will not be charged in fatal shooting

Racine County District Attorney Patricia Hanson has decided the officers involved in the death of Jesse Patt on July 10, 2024, in village of Caledonia are immune from criminal liability.

Officers Casey Smith and Andrew Gelden and Detective Chad Zoltak will not face criminal charges as Hanson noted, Patt’s conduct posed a reasonable and imminent threat to all of the officers at the scene, under the circumstances as they existed at the time. According to Hanson, Patt was armed with a firearm.

“Therefore, the intentional use of a firearm by officers was reasonable and necessary under the circumstances,” Hanson said.

According to authorities, on July 10, 2024, the Caledonia Police Department (CAPD) responded to Cliffside Park in Racine for a report of a male subject, later identified as Patt, lying face down on a trail.

Two CAPD officers, accompanied by Caledonia Fire Department EMS, initially responded and located Patt lying on a trail within Cliffside Park, face down.

While investigating and checking Patt’s welfare, Patt produced a firearm and fired one shot into the air, 15 to 20 feet from the responding officers. Patt then placed the firearm on the ground next to him, without surrendering to officers despite their commands. Additional squads with CAPD officers, a Mount Pleasant Police Department (MPPD) officer and Racine County Sheriff’s Office (RASO) special teams responded to the area and attempted negotiations with Patt, who requested cigarettes, for approximately 2 hours.

RASO negotiators devised a plan to throw a case to Patt with cigarettes and a phone inside, in the hopes that he would move away from his firearm. The less lethal tactics that were on scene were a Noise Flash Diversionary Device and two .40mm launchers, loaded with less lethal rounds. Less lethal rounds are sponge batons made of foam rubber, according to law enforcement.

Police said the case with the phone and cigarettes was thrown and landed about 4 feet away from Patt. As Patt began move toward it, one deputy threw the Noise Flash Diversionary Device to Patt’s left and two officers fired 5 sponge batons from the .40mm launchers. Some of the sponge batons struck Patt but did not knock him to the ground. After he was struck, Patt lunged to where his firearm was, causing three officers on scene to fire their lethal weapons. Drones above captured the entire incident.

Officer Smith, a 12-year veteran of the Mount Pleasant Police Department, fired his department issued handgun a total of nine times. Officer Gelden, a nine-year veteran of the Caledonia Police Department, fired his department-issued rifle a total of four times. Detective Zoltak, an eight-year veteran of the Caledonia Police Department, fired his department-issued rifle a total of two times. Patt fell to the ground after he was stuck by the firearms and was quickly secured for medical help. SWAT team Medical Services (TEMS) personnel attempted life-saving measures, however, Patt was later pronounced dead at the scene.

Click here to view body cam footage from the incident. Warning: Video contains graphic content.