“Brent was pulled over for an expired license plate and ran from a police officer and ended up with a death warrant,” his mother, Karen Kay Thompson, said Monday. “I can’t rationally justify any of that. I’m filing this lawsuit to speak for Brent and hope some justice is gained. I hope people learn from their mistakes whether they admit to it or not.”

Karen Kay Thompson said she hopes the lawsuit forces the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office to revisit its Taser policy and training so that deputies are more aware of their surroundings when they decide to shock someone. They especially should not shock with a Taser people in the middle of the interstate while traffic whizzes by at 75 mph or more, she said.

“Maybe they should put that in their manual and get tested on it to make sure they heard it,” she said.

After the district attorney cleared Lujan of criminal charges, Larimer County Sheriff John Feyen issued a statement saying deputies do not have the luxury of hindsight and unintended consequences are a tough reality.

“Every incident provides an opportunity to reflect and grow as an agency, and this incident is no exception,” Feyen wrote. “The deputy was forced to make a choice with no easy answer: act and try to stop the suspect … or stand by passively and simply hope no innocent people got hurt. We will continue to discuss this challenging case in training and internal conversations about dynamic decision-making, safety priorities and the consequences of action or inaction.”

But the Thompson family said there should be a penalty connected to their son’s death. Brent Thompson was not a threat to the deputy or anyone else, they said.

Brent Thompson had a “heart of gold,” his mother said. He was tidy and artistic, and the night he was killed he had his cat, Simon, in the car.

David Thompson said his son was killed over a petty offense — driving with an expired tag.

“My son ended up dead. Murdered,” he said. “I never thought I would be a parent saying this. You see it on TV and now, believe it or not, here I am.”

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