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Dwayne Jens
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In loving memory

Dwayne Jens

United States · Aged 41 · Died 12/30/2004
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How they died

Deadly force

A deputy tried to stop Dwayne Jens' pickup truck for speeding in rural Shelby County at about 7 p.m. Jens led officers on a chase on gravel county roads before stopping at a police roadblock. Videotape from deputy Chad Butler's other shows him exiting the cruiser, running up to Jens' truck, shattering its window and firing a shot, killing Jens. Jens was unarmed. Jens' 12-year-old daughter said her father was reaching for a cell phone when Butler shot him. The investigation into Jens' death led to the first indictment of a law officer in Iowa in a fatal shooting in 15 years. A Shelby County jury cleared Butler. In January 2006, Jens' family accepted a $300,000 settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit.

Alleged responsible partyShelby County Sheriff's OfficeReported by the cited sources. “Alleged” is used pending verification.

Why we remember them

This record exists so that Dwayne Jens, and all who are named in this archive, are never reduced to a number.

References & sources

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