SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Relatives of a Spokane Valley pastor fatally shot by a Spokane County sheriff’s deputy have filed a $14.7 million wrongful death claim against the county.
Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich told the Spokesman-Review on Tuesday he knew the claim had been filed but declined further comment.
Wayne Scott Creach was killed last Aug. 25 by Deputy Brian Hirzel in the parking lot of Creach’s family business, The Plant Farm. Believing Hirzel might be stealing from the business, the 74-year-old Creach grabbed his pistol and approached the unmarked patrol car.
Hirzel has been cleared in criminal, citizen advisory and internal probes. The deputy told investigators that Creach eventually put his .45 caliber pistol in the back waistband of his pants but grabbed for it after Hirzel ordered him to the ground and hit him in the leg with a baton when he refused. The deputy has said he fired when he could see the butt of the gun.
