DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) – The Clark County Grand Jury met Wednesday morning to review the events that surrounded the death of Deputy Matthew Yates in July 2022.
Prosecutor Daniel Driscoll held a press conference at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, February 8. He discussed the Grand Jury’s findings on this case as well as the events that happened on that day.
On July 24, 2022, Deputy Yates responded with other officers to Harmony Estates Mobile Home Park located on Ashwood Drive on reports of a woman breaking into a home. When officers arrived on the scene, they were met with gunfire.
Officers later found that a woman, Jodie Arbuckle, had entered the home to check on her son, Cole White. According to police, White shot Arbuckle, prompting a police response.
Clark County Sheriff Deborah Burchett said Yates was shot and went down inside the home. A tactical team was called to rescue the deputy and, after three separate recovery attempts, he was taken by CareFlight to Miami Valley Hospital where he died of his injuries.
Two other bodies were also removed from the mobile home.
2 NEWS crews at the scene reported that the mobile home caught fire sometime during the incident.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation completed its investigation in January of 2023 and presented its findings to the Clark County Prosecutor’s Office. These findings were reviewed by a Grand Jury on Tuesday, February 7.
According to Driscoll, the Grand Jury found that the officers were justified in discharging their weapons. While investigators were unable to determine how the fire began, the Grand Jury also decided that, should it have been due to the actions of the officers involved, those actions could be deemed appropriate.
The Grand Jury determined that White was responsible for both the deaths of Jodi Arbuckle and Deputy Yates.
