A 2020 shooting in Central Idaho is still under investigation. Boise police officer was there
Two years after a shooting in Custer County left a man dead, prosecutors are still investigating the incident, and recent clashes at the Boise Police Department highlighted that an off-duty veteran officer was at the scene of the deadly altercation.
Boise Police Cpl. Tim Green, who joined the department in 1994, was on vacation in 2020 when another law enforcement officer shot and killed a man at a campsite near Stanley. The incident is the subject of an ongoing complaint about the department that alleges former Police Chief Ryan Lee interfered in the matter and quashed an internal investigation.
Bonners Ferry Police Chief Brian Zimmerman shot and killed 73-year-old Russell Liddell, according to previous Idaho Statesman reporting. Green was standing next to Zimmerman at the time of the shooting, Custer County Prosecuting Attorney Justin Oleson told the Statesman in a recent phone interview.
The criminal investigation into the shooting of Liddell in Custer County is ongoing, and there is no indication Green did anything criminal, Oleson said.
Green did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment. The city of Boise and Boise Police Department declined to comment, citing pending litigation and personnel matters.
Green incident mentioned in lawsuit against city
The complaint that alleged Lee stopped an internal investigation into the shooting is one of several accusations about Boise police leadership that have become public in recent months, and been followed by the chief’s resignation and the firing of the city’s police oversight director.
At least three former employees have filed lawsuits or complaints against the city about related issues.
In one whistleblower lawsuit, Tom Fleming, a retired Boise police captain who oversaw the Office of Internal Affairs, alleged that Lee “intervened and demanded” Fleming end the initial investigation into Green and stop communicating with Custer County. Internal Affairs is responsible for examining issues raised about officers and determining whether discipline is warranted.
When incidents that warrant internal investigation arise, Boise police spokesperson Haley Williams said, generally speaking, those investigations can happen simultaneously with an outside investigation.
Oleson told the Statesman that someone within Internal Affairs reached out to him in the months after the August 2020 shooting, asking for information.
He said he provided the department with the information they asked for. Some months after that, he asked the department for information about the results of the internal investigation and was told it was a personnel matter, he said.
Fleming, in his lawsuit, said he told Lee that the initial findings of the investigation into Green could “merit severe disciplinary actions.” Williams declined to answer questions inquiring about Green’s current and prior administrative leave status.
“Chief Lee’s inexplicable and wrongful interference in the internal investigation unreasonably restricted and obstructed Capt. Fleming’s and other city employees’ ability to document and report suspected violations of laws, rules and regulations,” the lawsuit said.
The “unprecedented” publicization of a portion of the complaints, some of which took aim at Lee and which the mayor had known about since April, led Boise Mayor Lauren McLean to ask for Lee’s resignation in September, she said. McLean also cited management issues in her decision during an October in-person interview with the Statesman.
“We’ve got a department of nearly 400 folks, and we’ve got nine people complaining,” McLean said. “We took those complaints at face value, delivered them to a legal review team — separate from the city — asked them to tell us whether any crimes had been committed, any Boise policies had been violated, or if they had other recommendations for us.”
The third-party firm found the complaints did not violate city policy and that no crimes had been committed, McLean said.
County report describes shooting incident
About 18 people — including Zimmerman, Green, and other Idaho law enforcement officers and their spouses — were on an extended camping trip in August 2020 when the altercation ensued that left Liddell dead, according to a previous Custer County news release and Oleson. The group arrived at Tin Cup Campground, which is in Custer County, as part of their eight-day off-road vehicle trip around 4 p.m. Aug. 1, according to a previous report released by the county, as part of its investigation into the shooting.
At roughly 10:15 p.m., a blue Dodge Ram 2500 pickup, which was being driven by Liddell, pulled into the campground, the report said. Liddell began to get “agitated and upset” because he felt the group was in his spot, according to the report.
A man identified as Ted Stonehocker went over to Liddell. Stonehocker told authorities, according to the report, that Liddell “was very upset,” and that he smelled like alcohol.
At that point, Liddell said something to the effect of, “All you f----- Californians coming up here with your goddamn fancy toys,” which, the report said, several members of the group overheard. Stonehocker then told Liddell before walking back to his tent that he needed to leave or that he would “run him off” with a gun, the report said.
Liddell responded that he had a firearm, and then backed up the pickup, drove around a roundabout and stopped so the truck’s headlights were pointed at Stonehocker’s tent, the report said.
Brian Zimmerman had gone to retrieve his Glock 22 .40 caliber pistol, the report said, and began to approach Liddell with Green and a man identified as Fred Nystrom.
After exchanging words with Zimmerman, Liddell began to look for something in the driver’s-side back door, and the three men said they heard “the sound of a slide of a semiautomatic pistol being racked,” the report said. Zimmerman then pulled his gun out of his pocket, holding it by his leg.
Liddell, while turning toward the men, fired two shots, the report said, and Zimmerman fired back. Zimmerman told authorities that he thought Liddell had fired five shots.
After Brian Zimmerman took Liddell’s gun, Roberta Zimmerman, who is a nurse, and a former paramedic identified as Jennifer Green checked on Liddell but were unable to find his pulse.
Tim Green then drove roughly 4½ miles to Diamond D Ranch to contact the police, who showed up around 1:44 a.m., the report said.
The Bonners Ferry Police Department did not respond to a request for comment.
After the shooting, the department declined to place Zimmerman on administrative leave or to take other personnel action, and said “Chief Zimmerman’s actions were in no way related to his employment,” according to previous Statesman reporting.
