Attorney General James’ Office of Special Investigation Releases Report on Death of Nathan Wood

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Office of Special Investigation (OSI) today released its report on the death of Nathan Wood, who died on September 17, 2023 after an encounter with members of the Johnstown Police Department (JPD) in Fulton County. Following a thorough investigation, which included interviews with witnesses, review of home security camera footage, and comprehensive legal analysis, OSI concluded that a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the officer’s actions were justified under New York law.

During the early morning hours of September 17, a JPD officer responded to a call reporting an individual damaging an apartment with hammers at a house on Washington Street in Fulton County. Upon arrival at the house, the officer saw a man lying on the floor bleeding from his head while a woman struggled with Mr. Wood, who was holding a hammer. As the officer attempted to break up the struggle, a second officer arrived. Both officers repeatedly told Mr. Wood to drop the hammer, but Mr. Wood did not comply. Mr. Wood smashed a window with a hammer, yelled that he was going to “kill” his “buddy” and ran up a flight of stairs. The first officer followed Mr. Wood up the stairs, telling him to drop the hammer. Mr. Wood then came at the first officer with the hammer over his head, and the officer discharged his service weapon. Mr. Wood struck the first officer in the face with the hammer while the officer continued to shoot at Mr. Wood. Mr. Wood was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. The officer has made a full recovery.

Under New York’s justification law, a police officer may use deadly physical force when the officer reasonably believes it to be necessary to defend against the use of deadly physical force by another. In this case, the first officer on the scene encountered a person lying on the floor, bleeding from the head, and a second person engaged in a struggle with Mr. Wood. The officer then repeatedly instructed Mr. Wood to drop his weapon, but Mr. Wood refused and attacked the officer. Under these circumstances, given the law and the evidence, a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the officer’s use of deadly physical force against Mr. Wood was justified, and therefore OSI determined that criminal charges would not be pursued in this matter.