In the predawn hours of July 4, 2021, the small town of Olivia, Minnesota, was rocked by a fatal encounter that left 32-year-old Ricardo Ricky Torres Jr. dead. The incident unfolded around 2:20 a.m. in an alley near the 800 block of Lincoln Avenue North. Torres, a father who had moved to Minnesota from Texas for a fresh start, was shot multiple times by an Olivia police officer.
The officer involved was identified as Aaron Clouse, an 11-year veteran of the department. According to the official account, Clouse was in the alley to install a trail camera following reports of vandalism and vehicle thefts. He reported encountering Torres, whom he knew from previous interactions, carrying what appeared to be a gun. Clouse stated that he ordered Torres to drop the weapon, but Torres instead raised a sawed-off shotgun and told the officer, 'you drop the gun.' Fearing for his life, Clouse fired his service weapon, striking Torres three times in the torso. Torres was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators later found a sawed-off shotgun in Torres' possession and a backpack containing two fake guns, a paintball gun, and. 22 caliber pellets.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension launched an investigation into the shooting. The investigation revealed that Torres had allegedly spoken of 'finding' Officer Clouse in the days leading up to the incident, following a prior arrest by the officer. A woman who had been seeing Torres told investigators she had seen him with a shotgun on the night of his death and was concerned for her safety. The investigation also noted that there was no body camera or squad car footage of the incident itself, as the Olivia Police Department was not equipped with them.
In November 2021, the Blue Earth County Attorney's Office announced that no criminal charges would be filed against Officer Clouse. The county attorney concluded that Clouse's use of deadly force was legally justified as he was acting in response to an apparent threat of death or great bodily harm. This decision was met with anguish and anger by Torres's family and friends. They described him as a good man who would give the shirt off his back for anyone and questioned the necessity of the lethal force used. His girlfriend, with whom he shared an infant child, expressed disbelief that he would have confronted an officer in the manner described. In the days following his death, a candlelight vigil was held in the alley where he was shot, though it was reportedly disrupted by individuals in pickup trucks. The death of Ricardo Torres Jr. left a lasting scar on the community, highlighting the differing perspectives on the circumstances that led to the tragic end of his life.
