Mesa officer charged in shooting of unarmed man

A Mesa police officer is facing an aggravated assault charge stemming from the December shooting of an unarmed man outside a bar.

Officer Nathan Chisler is accused of shooting Randy Sewell on Dec. 6 after responding to reports of drunk and disorderly customers at a Mesa bar, according to the Mesa Police Department.

The county attorney filed a direct complaint against Chisler Wednesday.

All police shootings also undergo an administrative investigation to determine whether the officer’s actions violated department policy. Mesa police spokesman Det. Nik Rasheta said the department recommended Chisler be terminated after their investigation. He has the right to appeal the decision.

According to Mesa police, officers were called to Ojos Locos Sports Cantina, on Alma School Road just south of U.S. 60, shortly before 7:45 p.m. after the manager reported “they were having problems” with several male customers described as disorderly and causing a disturbance in the restaurant.

Officials said in a December news release that the customers were intoxicated and refused to leave the property.

Police repeatedly ordered one of the men to identify himself and place his hands behind his back, but he ignored the order and assaulted an officer, officials sad. They utilized “different levels of force” in an attempt to detain him, including using a stun gun and an “attempted takedown.”

Officers were still trying to detain Sewell when Chisler allegedly unholstered his weapon and shot the man. Sewell survived the shooting and is charged with aggravated assault, resisting arrest and a number of misdemeanors. His case is scheduled to go to trial in August.

Body-worn camera footage from the shooting wasn’t immediately available Wednesday.

Chisler is the first officer to be charged in a shooting since Mesa police Officer Philip “Mitch” Brailsford in 2016. Brailsford shot and killed Daniel Shaver as he was on his knees, begging for his life in a Mesa hotel. He was unarmed. Brailsford was charged with second-degree murder but was ultimately acquitted.

In 2010, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office charged Phoenix Officer Richard Chrisman in the fatal shooting of Danny Frank Rodriguez, 29, who was unarmed, during a domestic violence call. Two other officers have been charged in connection with on-duty shootings within the last 20 years.

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