COLERAIN TOWNSHIP, Ohio — From the moment Officer Huntington with Colerain Township police made contact with a man later identified as Joseph Van Niman to the moment one officer shot Van Niman in the eye, 44 seconds passed.
In that brief period, Prosecutor Melissa Powers said officers exchanged gunfire with Van Niman as he entered the town's Kroger location and repeatedly pointed a gun at Huntington and fellow officers Hatcher and Meinking as they attempted to question him for what appeared to be a drug deal.
A bystander was injured by what the prosecutor described as shrapnel.
Police Chief Ed Cordie defended the officers at a press conference Thursday, more than a week after the shooting happened.
"At no time when a round is being discharged should we ever back down," Cordie said. "We are asked to be guardians. We are asked to be warriors. There's days where we have to be protectors, and there's days where we have to stop a threat."
WATCH: Body camera footage shows shootout at Kroger in Colerain Township
Powers said the officers had been careful in choosing when to shoot and when not to shoot to avoid firing rounds deep into the crowded store as customers ran for their lives.
"There were times the officers were not taking a shot because what was behind that was a problem," she said.
The Colerain Township Police Department's use of force policy explicitly defends an officer's use of deadly force when their own lives or the lives of others are in jeopardy.
It states the officers are responsible for their actions in that moment, but "Officers are not required to retreat in lieu of the justifiable use of deadly physical force."
The policy continues: "The safety of innocent persons is of paramount importance. Where there is substantial risk to the safety or life of an innocent citizen, the safety of the citizen should take precedence over the apprehension of the suspect."
Powers said the officers' quick actions could have saved countless lives as she announced that those involved would not be facing charges.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation's probe into the shootout is ongoing.
Powers said Van Niman is recovering at the hospital and is expected to survive to face a slew of charges including attempted murder of a police officer.
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