Prosecutors: No evidence thus far to charge Minneapolis woman who claimed self-defense in fatal shooting

Prosecutors said Monday they do not have enough evidence thus far to charge a Minneapolis woman who fatally shot a man she described as coming at her in a threatening manner after breaking into her garage.

Police last week forwarded their investigation into the Feb. 22 shooting of Martin L. Johnson, 30, for consideration of charges against the 53-year-old homeowner who told police that she killed the man after he broke into her detached garage, then approached her while reaching into his waistband.

"The case has been deferred pending further investigation," said Lacey Severins, a spokeswoman for the Hennepin County Attorney's Office.

Police spokesman Garrett Parten said Monday afternoon that the case has yet to be returned by prosecutors for further investigation.

The woman's account was detailed in a search warrant affidavit filed by police in District Court as part of their investigation into the killing of Johnson behind her Corcoran neighborhood home in the 3300 block of S. 25th Avenue.

She is identified in the affidavit, but she has not been arrested. The Star Tribune generally does not identify people before they are charged.

The woman told police that Johnson had broken into her detached garage through the side door, and that she fired four warning shots from a handgun in an attempt "to scare the deceased off," the search warrant affidavit read.

"The deceased came towards [the woman and her 26-year-old son] and was reaching in his waistband," the court filing continued. "This is when the deceased was shot with a rifle."

The court document did not say whether Johnson, of Minneapolis, had a weapon. Parten said police are not saying yet whether Johnson was armed.