Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announces dismissal of case against Trooper Ryan Londregan

(KSTP) – Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty has announced the dismissal of charges against State Trooper Ryan Londregan in the shooting death of Ricky Cobb II last summer.

According to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office (HCAO), defense lawyers presented several new pieces of evidence that would make it impossible for the State to prove that Londregan’s actions were not an authorized use of force by a peace officer.

In an open court hearing on April 29, the defense revealed the substance of Londregan’s testimony, claiming he saw Cobb reach for a trooper’s firearm just before Londregan fired shots that killed Cobb.

The HCAO also states that an MSP trainer said he never instructed officers to refrain from shooting into a moving vehicle during an extraction, even though that is best practice.

Following the disclosures, the prosecution team consulted with a use-of-force expert and re-evaluated whether the State could still prove beyond a reasonable doubt that deadly force was not justified.

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Moriarty, in collaboration with the prosecutors handling the case, determined the State could no longer meet its burden of proof and made the decision to dismiss the case, according to the HCAO.

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office will hold a press conference Monday at 8 a.m. to discuss the decision in more detail.

The special prosecutors retained in this case developed a detailed report which includes an analysis of the impact of the new evidence. A summary of that report can be viewed below:

Moriarty also released an open letter to the community that can be read below:

Londregan was charged with unintentional homicide, manslaughter and assault in the shooting death of Ricky Cobb II, who was shot after attempting to drive away from a traffic stop on I-94 last year.