The New Hampshire Attorney General’s office says three police officers who shot and killed Nickenley Turenne, who was Black, last December were justified in using lethal force.
A final report into the incident, released Wednesday, said it was “objectively reasonable” for Manchester police officers Andre Chan, Brandon Baliko, and Devin Lambert, “to believe that Mr. Turenne was about to use, or was actively using, deadly force against Officer Chan.”
Turenne’s death has led to calls for accountability from the family and the public, including during a Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen meeting in May.
Here's what people who loved Nickenley Turenne told us about him.
The report includes new information about the incident that took place in a residential neighborhood in December of 2025. An officer initially responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle near Green Acres Elementary School before dawn. Turenne was asleep in the car, along with another woman who, because of an outstanding court order, he was not supposed to be in contact with.
Turenne fled from the officer and crashed his car, before taking off on foot. As additional police arrived, Turenne then walked back towards the vehicle, where he encountered multiple officers.
The shooting was captured on body-worn cameras, and the footage was released on Wednesday. Investigators at the Attorney General’s office said the videos confirm that Turenne ignored repeated commands to show his hands, and that he instead pulled an object that emitted light from his pocket and pointed it at the officers.
According to the report, authorities mistook Turenne’s flashlight for a gun, and opened fire, striking him five times.
“Even though it was later revealed that Mr. Turenne never fired at the officers and did not have a gun, it was reasonable for the officers to have concluded, based on all of the circumstances, that Mr. Turenne presented a danger to Officer Chan and other officers, and that he did, in fact, have a gun,” the attorney general’s office said in its report.
Marsha Kazarosian, an attorney representing Turenne’s family, said she reviewed the report and body-worn footage and views the “totality of the circumstances in a different light” than Attorney General John Formella.
“In my view, I think Nickenley’s civil rights were violated,” said Kazarosian. “And although the officers may not be charged criminally, which we know is a different standard, they may still very well be held accountable civilly.”
All three officers had limited experience on the Manchester police force at the time of the shooting.
They were placed on administrative leave after the shooting, but are now back on duty.
