PITTSBURGH -- A state police trooper who fired gunshots at a Pittsburgh man in a roving DUI patrol on the South Side over the St. Patrick's Day weekend is the same person who killed an unarmed 12-year-old during a chase in 2002.

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State police spokesman Jack Lewis in Harrisburg told WTAE Channel 4 Action News that Trooper Samuel Nassan III fired shots at Nicholas Haniotakis, 33, of the South Side Slopes. An autopsy shows Haniotakis died of gunshot wounds.
Story: South Side Pursuit Ends In Police-Involved Shooting

Pittsburgh police Sgt. Terry Donnelly was also involved in the incident with Haniotakis, according to Chief Nate Harper's office.

"The individual that was fatally shot essentially used a 2,000-pound -- give or take -- vehicle to attempt to kill two police officers last night," said attorney Eric Stoltenberg, who's representing Nassan through the Pennsylvania State Troopers Association union.

It's not yet clear who fired the shot that killed Haniotakis.

"There was more than one shot," witness James Lippencott said. "There was, like, a 'pop, pop, pop' kind of noise."

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No Charges So Far

District Attorney Stephen Zappala is still reviewing the shooting, which city police said happened when Haniotakis nearly backed over the officers with his vehicle's headlights off at about 1:30 a.m. Sunday on 13th Street.

"When officers activated their emergency lights, the driver put the vehicle in reverse and backed down 13th Street at a high rate of speed," Harper said at a news conference.
Unedited Video: Pittsburgh Police News Conference

Haniotakis ultimately crashed into a parked car at Wharton and 22nd streets, where, police said, he refused to comply with the officers' orders and they fired an unknown number of shots. Police said he backed up again before sharply turning toward an officer, at which time more shots were fired.

"They were screaming, 'Get out your car.' He wouldn't do that. He started hitting other cars," witness Richard Bruno said.

Reaction

Zappala declined to comment on the investigation.

Lewis said Nassan is on desk duty pending a review of the case.

"Both of those officers utilized deadly force because they were engaged with deadly force, and police officers are trained to use that level of force to protect themselves and to protect the public," Stoltenberg said.

"Under those circumstances, (Donnelly) anticipated that he could suffer serious bodily harm, even death. And under those circumstances, officers are permitted to use deadly force," said attorney Bryan Campbell, representing Donnelly through the local Fraternal Order of Police chapter.

Some of Haniotakis' family members in the Slopes declined to comment and referred questions to attorney Jim Ecker, who told Channel 4 Action News that he won't speak with reporters until the funeral is held.

Councilman Bruce Kraus, who represents the South Side in District 3, did not comment directly on the chase or the shots fired but he said the state Liquor Control Board has allowed the neighborhood to become saturated with liquor licenses.

According to Kraus, drinking is allowed at 124 establishments on the South Side with space for a total of 22,500 patrons -- more than Mellon Arena can hold.

"It's such a party central. It creates this atmosphere for anyone and everyone to come over there, challenge authority, and think that it's Mardi Gras all the time and we can do whatever we want to do whenever we want to do it," Kraus said.

Related:

August 12, 2008: Police Hear South Side Neighbors' Crime Complaints

July 3, 2007: Mayor: Late-Night South Side Chaos Down

March 1, 2007: South Siders Complain Of Late-Night, Alcohol-Fueled Crime

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Driver's History

Haniotakis had a similar incident in Mount Oliver in 2005 when he was involved in a chase after hitting a police officer with his car, records indicate. The car crashed into a cement barrier, and Haniotakis ran off.

Haniotakis was later arrested and pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and sentenced to jail time.

Stoltenberg said Nassan acted appropriately by shooting at Haniotakis, who Stoltenberg called "a guy with a history of aggressive behavior towards law enforcement who pled guilty to aggravated assault, decided to use his truck to try to run over Trooper Nassan and to try to kill a City of Pittsburgh police officer."

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History Of Driver, Trooper

Haniotakis had a similar incident in Mount Oliver in 2005 when he was involved in a chase after hitting a police officer with his car, records indicate. The car crashed into a cement barrier, and Haniotakis ran off. He was later arrested and pleaded guilty to aggravated assault.

Nassan and his then-partner, Juan Curry, were cleared of criminal wrongdoing in the 2002 shooting death of Michael Ellerbe in Uniontown, Fayette County. Both troopers were later named in a wrongful death lawsuit by the 12-year-old boy's family, and the state settled for $12.5 million.

Sideshow: Players In The Michael Ellerbe Case

At a coroner's inquest, Nassan said he shot Ellerbe because he heard a gun go off and thought the shot hit Curry while they were chasing the boy from a stolen vehicle. However, Curry said the shot came from his own gun when it snagged on the top of a fence he was climbing.

Nassan is named in a federal lawsuit filed by a man who claims the trooper handcuffed him and threw him to the ground, injuring his ankle, outside Rumshakers bar on East Carson Street on the South Side. The trooper was breaking up a fight involving the alleged victim's friends.

In 2005, Nassan was sued by a man who got a ticket from him after allegedly flipping his middle finger in traffic in Robinson Township. The driver denied making the gesture and said he would have been protected under the First Amendment anyway. The lawsuit was eventually settled.