Richmond Police: No charges filed against officer who shot and killed armed suspect on Easter

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — During a Crime briefing on Thursday, July 11Richmond Police Chief Rick Edwards said prosecutors will not file charges against the police officer who shot and killed an armed man in the city’s East End on Easter Sunday.

During the meeting, Edwards said the department had just learned from the Richmond District Attorney’s Office that it would not pursue criminal charges against the officer.

“We are currently conducting an internal review of this (incident) for possible policy violations,” Edwards said during the meeting.

At around 5 a.m. on Sunday, March 31, officers responded to a parking lot in the 1900 block of Cedar Street on a report of an armed man. When they arrived at the scene, they found 20-year-old Kenneth Sharp sleeping in a car.

According to police, after officers called Sharp’s attention, he got out of the car with a large firearm in his hand. One of the officers ordered Sharp to drop the weapon, but he did not finish before the other fired four shots at him, killing him.

In April, Chief Edwards identified the officer who shot Sharp as Todd Hall, who he said had 13 years of police experience. Hall and the other officer, who did not fire his weapon during the incident, were both placed on paid leave after the shooting.