The mother of a mentally ill man killed by police in Peterborough on June 21 is demanding that details about the incident be released.
Patricia Lesko, of Ann Arbor, Michigan, said she has yet to hear from Attorney General Scott Foster, who she called on July 8 to ask “if there was any information available about how our mentally ill, autistic son died in New Hampshire.”
Lesko was informed of her son’s death on June 22, when she received a call from New Hampshire state troopers, she said. She also said she heard from a lawyer in the attorney general’s office later that day. “The lawyer began by trying to force me to promise to tell no one the details he was sharing,” she said.
Senior Assistant Attorney General Jeff Strelzin said it is normal not to engage with the family after initially informing it in homicide investigations.
He also said that he expects this investigation to conclude later this week.
Lesko died of a single gunshot wound after a chase that involved N.H. State Troopers, and Greenfield and Peterborough police. His death was ruled a homicide.
“Our son Lane was, we suspect, in the throes of a manic episode and we know he had not taken his anti-psychotic medication for three days prior to his June 21 death,” Lesko said in an email.
“The public, particularly in light of the many, many police shootings of the mentally ill in our country, deserves absolute transparency insofar that such transparency does not interfere with the investigation,” Lesko said.
“Withholding all information, including information that does not compromise the investigation, does a disservice to our family and the people of New Hampshire who elected him to uphold the law, not hide behind its skirts.”