No charges for officer in fatal police shooting of Lawrence Drennan in Winnebago County

The police officer that shot and killed a 36-year-old man in February in Winnebago County will not be criminally charged, the local district attorney ruled.

Lawrence M. Drennan was shot and killed by North Fond du Lac Police Sgt. Bryce LaLuzerne on Feb. 2 shortly after 9:40 p.m.

Winnebago County District Attorney Eric D. Sparr issued his decision Friday and the Wisconsin Department of Justice made Sparr's report and footage from the incident available.

The incident began as a traffic stop in the village of North Fond du Lac in Fond du Lac County. LaLuzerne's redacted bodycam captures the stop. Drennan was pulled over for not having his taillights on.

Drennan said he was homeless and just looking to get to where he'd been staying the night, footage shows. LaLuzerne asked Drennan to step out of the vehicle after observing an open beer can in the car and also because Drennan was slurring his speech and had glossy eyes.

According to Sparr's report, autopsy results showed Drennan had a blood alcohol content level of 0.198, more than twice the legal driving limit.

Drennan refused to exit before putting the car into gear and driving away, leading to a pursuit.

During the minutes-long pursuit, Drennan called 911 making threatening statements, including "if they stop me, I will shoot them all to death," and "get ready to fire to kill, because I’m going to fire to kill," according to Sparr's report.

Eventually the pursuit came to an end in the town of Nekimi in Winnebago County when a tire deflation device was used and Drennan came to a stop in a field.

LaLuzerne called out to Drennan asking him to surrender and to show him his hands, the report said. LaLuzerne radioed that Drennan is asking him to kill him. According to Sparr's report, Drennan approached officers with his right hand behind his back and LaLuzerne fired twice, striking Drennan fatally once.

Sparr said despite Drennan getting as close as 15 yards away from officers and repeating indications that he would shoot officers, no firearm was located.

"Drennan's desire to get officers to shoot him was clear," Sparr said. "Officers attempted to defuse the situation verbally, but Drennan gave no indication that he would be distracted from his goal.

"The single issue I address in this opinion is whether the shooting of Lawrence Drennan was an unjustified, criminal act. It clearly was not. Sgt. LaLuzerne should not, and will not, face criminal charges from the Winnebago County District Attorney's Office."

A verified GoFundMe for Drennan was started in the days after the shooting. Family and friends of Drennan did not respond to request for comment. The fundraiser states he was a father to a young daughter.