HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015 07-06 Maplewood nightclub guard won't be charged in fatal shooting PIONEER PRESS Maplewood nightclub guard won't be charged in fatal shooting
Updated:07/0620 7 5 09:49:54 PM CDT TwinCities.com
Prosecutors will not press charges against a security guard who shot and killed a man after being
attacked by a group outside the Stargate nightclub in Maplewood.
The guard,an employee of JBM Patrol&Protection,acted within the law May 29 when he fatally shot
Chou"Tony"Yang of St.Paul,according to a statement from the Ramsey County attorney's office
following a review of investigative reports.
The attorney's office is withholding the name of the 28-year-old security guard because of concerns for
his safety.
"It was reasonable for(the guard)to fear great bodily harm or death after having been knocked to the
ground while outnumbered and physically attacked by a number of inen,"the county attorney's office said
in the statement."For that reason,(his)use of force against Mr.Yang was legally authorized and criminal
charges are not justified."
According to Maplewood police,Yang and at least fve other men attacked the armed security guard
about 1 a.m.after being kicked out of the 18-and-over club at 1700 Rice St.
The group chased the guard and,when he fell,they surrounded and assaulted him,according to witness
statements and surveillance video.The security guard fired his handgun,striking Yang,20,who died at
Regions Hospital in St.Paul.
Stargate,once shuttered because of the number of fights that occurred there,was taken over by new
owners in December 2008 and reopened in May 2009.
Four people were injured outside the club in 2011 when a man used a box cutter in a fght.
A man was fatally shot in October outside a liquor store in the same strip mall as Stargate.
Jaime DeLage can be reached at 651-228-5450.Follow him at twitter.com/JaimeDeLage.