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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 28, 2005 Dale Pina holds a photo of his son Justin, 17, who was shot by a Medford policeman Monday after the teen attacked his neighbor. Pina says the incident could�ve been prevented if police had taken Justin away during the first call to police that day. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Police shooting shakes family By ANITA BURKE Mail Tribune Dale Pina knew his son needed help when the 17-year-old boy knocked a bedroom door off its hinges and burst in, threatening to kill him in the middle of the night Monday. Frightened, Pina called police to the family home in the 700 block of Gilman Road at about 2 a.m., hoping officers could take the out-of-control teen into custody or at least drive him to a hospital. "We tried to tell them he needed to be off the streets," Pina said. "I thought there was something they could do. "They refused my cry for help." With limited options for dealing with a troubled teen in the middle of the night, officers tried to calm the situation by having the elder Pina leave the house. Advertisement It was no reprieve for the youngster, Justin Miles Pina, who had two episodes of erratic behavior in the past nine months but had never turned violent before, his father said. By morning, Justin had taken his troubles next door, allegedly attacking his neighbor, Helen Marie Brown, 55, with a large kitchen knife, police reported. In responding to her call for help, Medford police officer John Torgerson shot Pina when the teen refused to drop the knife. Pina remains in critical condition at Rogue Valley Medical Center under police guard. Brown, who suffered stab wounds and head injuries, was stable and in fair condition after surgery at the same hospital, officials said. "This shouldn’t have happened," Dale Pina said. "It could have been prevented." Medford police Lt. Mike Moran said the family’s concern is valid and a team of investigators led by Oregon State Police will examine the assault on Brown, Torgerson’s actions and the police response to previous calls the Pina family made. Until the investigation is complete, Moran said he couldn’t comment on the details of the case. Justin Pina likely will face charges of attempted murder and first-degree assault. Torgerson, a 16-year veteran of the police force, is on administrative leave until a grand jury evaluates the shooting. Dale Pina said the family’s troubles started in May, when Justin erupted in odd, delusional behavior. After he snatched a pair of glasses off his mother’s face, police took him to the emergency room at Rogue Valley Medical Center for evaluation at his parents’ request. Pina said his son was admitted for a full battery of neurological tests, CAT scans, spinal taps and tests for drug use, but the work found no physical cause for his problems, which abated. The teen visited his step-brother in South Carolina and wanted to follow him into the Navy, Pina said. In the coming year, Justin planned to return to South Carolina to finish high school. It’s unclear exactly when Justin returned to Medford. But family life had resumed until October, when Justin had another delusional episode, Pina said. He spent several days under observation at RVMC and a few more in a hospital in Eugene. "We went through these things, but he never became violent," Pina said. The disturbed behavior returned intermittently last week, but the family watched movies together on Christmas, then went to bed, he said. A few hours later, Justin rampaged through the house, saying he would kill his father. He kicked in the bedroom door and began battering his dad on the back of the head. "Whatever snapped in his head in that hour since we watched the movies, erased me from his mind," Pina said. "He thought I was a stranger in our home." Pina said he broke his toe in the scuffle and was still feeling bruised Tuesday. At the suggestion of police, Pina left the house, while his wife, Georgia, stayed with Justin and his 13-year-old brother, Brandon. She and Brandon slipped out of the house about 7:30 a.m. as Justin’s behavior became increasingly delusional and frightening, Pina said. The family met at the nearby airport and decided to return to try to help Justin. By the time they got home, police had flooded the neighborhood and Justin lay still in the side yard next door, dropped by a gunshot to the chest. "I didn’t know if he was alive or what," Pina said. Police said Justin forced his way inside Brown’s home when he saw her returning from some errands, then attacked her as she was on the phone with emergency dispatchers at about 7:50 a.m. Pina said his son had cared for Brown’s cats in the past when she was on vacation. "My poor, innocent neighbor," Pina said. "He could have killed her. It’s just devastating to know, and to know that this shouldn’t have happened at all." Pina said he intends to fight to make sure police have the tools they need to help people and prevent situations like his son’s from escalating. "I have a cause to make sure this doesn’t happen again," he said. "I will do it for my son and for my neighbor." Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4485, or e-mail Police shooting shakes family ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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