The family of an Augusta County man shot and killed by two sheriff’s deputies on Dec. 17 is “seeking transparency, accuracy, and basic human dignity” in the investigation into what happened that night.
“We are not asking for special treatment. We are asking for the same consideration any family would expect when they lose a loved one under these circumstances. We want answers, but we want those answers to be based on completed investigations and verified facts, not premature conclusions released to the media before the family has even been properly informed,” the family of Dustin Griffin, 42, said in a statement released through their attorney, Elliott Harding, a Charlottesville-based civil-rights lawyer.
The statement was a formal response to the Jan. 7 media release from Tim Martin, the Augusta County Commonwealth’s Attorney, in which Martin declared the actions of the two deputies who shot and killed Griffin “not only justified, but completely necessary.”
Statements
- Family of Dustin Griffin calls for transparency (PDF)
- Tim Martin on the Dustin Griffin shooting (PDF)
The family, through Harding, noted that “as of the same evening of the press release, at approximately 6:15 p.m., a Virginia State Police investigator confirmed to the family that while certain information had been shared with the Commonwealth’s Attorney, the investigation into this incident remained ongoing.”
Also noted: “as of that same date, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner had not yet completed or released its official report and disclosed that it could be up to twelve more weeks before completion. Despite this, the public statement presented conclusions and characterizations that suggest a level of certainty not supported by a completed investigation.”
I addressed this matter to Martin – that it seemed premature to me that he issued a statement exonerating the deputies involved without having all of the facts – in a phone interview conducted on Jan. 8.
Martin’s response:
“The fact is, there’s one set of evidence that outweighs most everything else, and that’s the benefit of body-worn camera footage, because you have video footage of exactly what took place,” Martin said.
ICYMI
- Augusta County: Man killed in officer-involved shooting; one deputy airlifted
- Augusta County: Medical examiner confirms ID of man shot, killed by deputy
- The story of the man killed in Augusta County officer-involved shooting
- Augusta County: Prosecutor exonerates deputies in Dec. 17 shooting; still waiting for details
- Augusta County: What happened on Dec. 17 on Parkersburg Turnpike?
“What exactly took place” is still at question publicly, despite Martin’s assertion, based on his description of the bodycam footage, which is shielded from public scrutiny because the investigation being conducted by the State Police is, in fact, still ongoing.
The prosecutor’s Jan. 7 statement seemed to make it out that Griffin was hit with two shots, but the family authorized a private autopsy, which revealed that “he was shot more than two times, a fact that was not acknowledged or addressed in the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s statement.”
Martin, in fact, revealed to me in our Jan. 8 interview that Griffin had been shot six times – five times in the torso, and once in the head.
Martin offered in the interview to get a request in to the State Police to allow me to watch the footage; I asked him to instead prioritize allowing members of Griffin’s family, who, I told him, I understood had not been contacted by investigators in the three weeks since Griffin was shot and killed, to see the video, if they wished.
The statement from the family issued through their attorney confirms that they have not been contacted by authorities regarding “critical details” of the investigation, or given the opportunity to view the bodycam footage.
“The Commonwealth’s Attorney spent an hour on the phone with a reporter from the Augusta Free Press, during which unreleased details were discussed, and the reporter was offered an opportunity to view the body-worn camera footage. This footage has not been made available to the family despite a formal request,” the family said.
The family is also raising concern with the timeline of how the Augusta County Sheriff’s Office interacted with Griffin, who was on probation for prior drug-related offenses, as the Sheriff’s Office handled its investigation into a local drug-dealing ring.
“Deputies served a search warrant in October of last year. However, he was not taken into custody at that time, nor was his probation revoked,” the family said. “He was repeatedly pressured to act as an informant. He later appeared voluntarily at the Sheriff’s Office on December 4, 2025, and was again not taken into custody. Additionally, he had a scheduled court appearance for a vehicle registration summons on December 22, just five days after he was killed.
“Given these circumstances, the family respectfully questions why, despite multiple opportunities for Dustin to be taken into custody while he was present voluntarily and in a controlled setting, he was instead later confronted in a different environment. These are the kinds of procedural questions the family believes deserve careful review as part of the ongoing investigation.”
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Chris Graham
