No charges in St. Paul police killing of 65-year-old man holding a knife

More than a year after the death of a St. Paul man at the hands of police, prosecutors have decided not to file charges against the officer who shot and killed 65-year-old Yia Xiong as he wielded a knife.

In a joint statement Wednesday, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said they determined that St. Paul officer Abdirahmin Dahir was justified in using deadly force against Xiong.

“Anytime deadly force is used by the government, it is a tragedy for all those involved, and it requires prosecutors to seek the truth without bias, fear, or favor and do the right thing,” Choi wrote.

He added that he is “deeply saddened that this legal decision may deepen the pain for Mr. Yia Xiong’s family and community members who wanted something different.”

Protests and vigils have been held over the past year to demand charges in the killing. Hmong community members and several organizations expressed outrage over the shooting and said Xiong’s death could have been avoided.

Snowdon Herr, head of the group Justice for Yia Xiong, said he and others in the Hmong community were “devastated” by the decision not to charge the officer.

“It’s totally unjustifiable and it’s the darkest day for all of us, especially Yia Xiong’s family,” said Herr.

The decision follows an investigation by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, a review of the case by the Attorney General’s and County Attorney’s offices, and an analysis by use-of-force expert Jeffrey Noble.

Police were called on Feb. 11, 2023, to an apartment building on a report of a man with a knife. A 911 caller said Xiong entered a toddler’s private birthday party in the complex’s party room and offered money to children before being asked to leave, according to a 39-page memorandum released Wednesday. The caller said Xiong later returned with a knife and threatened the caller’s adult son.

Police body camera footage shows officers entering the complex, with one person yelling “Please, hurry.” The officers followed Xiong as he entered his apartment, closing the door behind him. After officer Noushue Cha pushed the door open, Xiong walked out of the apartment into the hall holding a 12-inch knife. Dahir then fired his gun and Cha deployed his Taser.

Noble wrote in his report that he believed the officers were in “imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury” when Xiong was shot. Noble added that he believed it reasonable for the officers to push into Xiong’s apartment to “ensure that no one was at risk of harm.”

Herr and others angered by Xiong’s death, however, said they believed the police agitated Xiong by pushing open the apartment door, leading him to come out armed.

“He went into the safest place on Earth, his apartment, and hoped that things will get calmed down,” Herr said. “Instead, they kicked his door, scared him out, and provoked the situation before they shot him dead.”

Activists and family members have said they believe Xiong’s hearing loss and inability to understand English factored into his death. Herr said police should have reached out to a bilingual Hmong speaker to help de-escalate the situation. “Call a Hmong community leader like me for us to come out and negotiate instead of shooting him to death,” he said.

However, one of the adults at the birthday party said Xiong was able to respond to her questions in English, according to the memorandum.

Ellison wrote that the decision on whether to charge “must be based on what the law requires, and it is a responsibility we take with the greatest seriousness even as we hold the victim and his family in our hearts and minds.”