He concludes that troopers had a right and a duty to return fire

Two Albany-area troopers were justified when they fired their duty weapons during a fatal shootout Aug. 25 on Interstate 5 near Millersburg, District Attorney Jason Carlile concluded in a letter he made public Tuesday.

Trooper Russell Decker, 33, and Senior Trooper Huff Meyr, 40, stopped a Toyota Corolla for a traffic violation and because the driver was suspected of being an armed robber, Carlile said.

Both the troopers walked up to the vehicle, but not with their guns drawn as initially reported in the Democrat-Herald. (The state police had said it was a "high-risk" traffic stop, and while that sometimes means with weapons drawn, it was not true in this case.)

The troopers asked the driver, John Paul Tolliver, 26, of Mitchville, Md., to get out of the car. When Tolliver came out, he began shooting a 9mm semi-automatic handgun, Carlile said.

"Trooper Decker's life was saved by his bullet proof vest," Carlile wrote. The trooper was hit three times, twice in the vest and once in one foot. Meyr was not injured.

Both troopers fired their weapons at Tolliver, who was struck in the legs and in one arm. Decker kept returning fire even after he himself was hit, according to the DA.

None of Tolliver's wounds were fatal, an autopsy later determined. But during the shooting, Tolliver turned his gun on himself and shot himself in the head. That was confirmed through a video of the incident, by the autopsy and by an analysis of the guns involved, Carlile said.

Tolliver died the day after the shooting at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis.

After reviewing the reports and video, the district attorney called the shooting "shocking" and said it all happened in a matter of seconds.

The shooting was investigated by Detective Ken Pacyna of the Oregon State Police, among others.

In a letter to Pacyna, Carlile wrote: "Initially, the stop appeared peaceful, but when Tolliver began to get out of his car, he suddenly took a 9mm handgun and violently, without provocation and without warning, fired many times at both troopers."

The DA also concluded that at the time Tolliver shot himself, "no one could tell that that had happened. It happened so fast that only a careful review of the videotape, combined with the autopsy and crime lab work show what happened."

The DA declared: "Both Trooper Decker and Trooper Meyr were justified in firing at Tolliver. Tolliver had suddenly confronted them with intense, repeated and deadly physical force. Trooper Decker and Trooper Meyr defended themselves and others, as they had the right and duty to do."

Carlile added: "While not essential to the legal analysis and conclusion that the troopers were justified in shooting Tolliver, it is chilling to note that material recovered from his personal effects discloses that Tolliver was fatalistic and expressed suicidal ideations."

Investigators found other handguns and knives in Tolliver's car, Carlile said.

The shooting was investigated by state police, the district attorney's office and the Linn County Sheriff's Office.

"The investigation was prompt, thorough and complete. Thank you and the other investigators for their work on this case," Carlile wrote.

State Police Lt. Mark Cotter, from the Albany area office, said Meyr will return to work within the next week and Decker will return after he has recovered from his foot injury.

The video of the shooting is not being released at this time because state police are planning to do an administrative review of the incident to see if there is anything they can learn from it, Cotter said.

About two hours before the I-5 shooting, three robberies or attempted robberies were reported at an interstate rest area north of Sutherlin.

One victim positively identified Tolliver as a suspect, State Police Lt. Gregg Hastings said.

Tolliver's body was sent to Washington, D.C., according to McHenry Funeral Home which handled the arrangements. He had lived in New Jersey and in Maryland, and he had family there.