Jury clears Nebraska officers in death of Wyoming couple

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Officers with the Lincoln police department and Nebraska State Patrol have been cleared of any wrongdoing in the shooting deaths of a Wyoming couple last year.

A grand jury issued its finding Thursday in the Feb. 20 shooting of Christian Alexander, 26, of Evansville, Wyoming; and Hailey Stainbrook, 30, of Casper, Wyoming, Lancaster County Attorney Patrick Condon said.

Officers began looking for the couple after they robbed a man of his wallet and then used his credit card, police said.

A pursuit began after a patrol trooper spotted them and a gun was pointed at officers during the chase, Condon said. A patrol cruiser eventually collided intentionally with the couple’s vehicle, The Lincoln Journal Star reported.

Alexander was shot when he pointed a gun at state troopers and a Lincoln officer, police said.

After Alexander was shot, the troopers and officer negotiated for about 7 minutes with Stainbrook to drop her weapon so officers could provide aid. When she refused and pointed the weapon at officers, she was shot by one of the troopers, Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner said.