HUMBOLDT — The mother of a Humboldt man who was shot and killed by a conservation officer has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the state of Iowa and the man who shot her son, according to a complaint filed with the United States District Court Northern District of Iowa — Central Division.

Shane Jensen, 19, was shot and killed by William Spece, an Iowa Department of Natural Resources conservation officer on Nov. 11, 2017.

Jensen’s mother, Krystal Wagner, of Humboldt, filed the lawsuit against Spece and the DNR on Wednesday.

The complaint alleges that the DNR failed to properly train, equip, and limit Spece’s conduct in matters outside of his expertise and maintain appropriate oversight of his activities.

The complaint alleges that Spece caused the wrongful death of Jensen using excessive force.

Representing Wagner is Attorney David O’Brien, of Cedar Rapids.

“We are just trying to hold law enforcement officers accountable for their wrongful conduct,” O’Brien said. “That’s what the lawsuit is about. We will litigate it and see what happens. Nowadays we have to plead these things with so many facts and so specific that you set out what we allege occurred, which is a little different than what the law enforcement officers allege, but that’s what litigation is for.”

He added, “It’s a very, very tragic situation, but in our view it wasn’t handled appropriately and that’s why we are litigating.”

On the morning of the shooting, Jensen was being sought by family members and law enforcement after expressing thoughts of suicide by cop to family members and stealing a vehicle, according to published reports.

According to the complaint, Jensen suffered from autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and obsessive compulsive disorder.

That afternoon, Jensen was reportedly hiding under the deck of a home located at 205 Fourth St. S. in Dakota City when officers arrived on scene at about 2:30 p.m., according to Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation reports.

Jensen was armed with a 9 mm handgun. He eventually fired the weapon into the air and then pointed the gun at the officers, the Iowa Department of Public Safety reported.

At one point Jensen pointed the gun in the air, fired off a round and brought the gun back down, according to DCI reports.

“Spece recalled the kid yelling that they were going to have to kill him,” the DCI report stated. “That was when he brought his hands down and circled around to face Spece and (Tim) Fisher, Humboldt County sheriff’s deputy. Spece stated that’s when he saw the kid’s wrist and muscles flex, so Spece shot him.”

Jensen was killed by a single gunshot wound to the chest, according to the autopsy.

In the complaint, it states “A video of the shooting shows that Spece was not truthful about claiming Jensen pointed his gun at him and/or Fisher.”

Jensen was well known to law enforcement officers in Humboldt, according to the complaint.

“Humboldt County Deputy Sheriffs Kenneth Vorland, Matt Steil, and Tim Fisher were also on the scene, understood Jensen’s condition, knew that time and patience were their ally and never fired their weapons,” the complaint states.

According to previous reports, Spece was in Humboldt County on conservation-related business when he was asked by the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department to assist in a search for a missing person, who was Jensen.

In the reports, Spece said he “always backs up other officers if asked, especially in domestic cases and other high risk cases.”

Spece was contacted Friday afternoon by The Messenger. He asked that questions regarding the case be directed to the state supervisors.

Wagner is requesting a trial by jury on the claims.

She is seeking judgement against the defendants in “an amount sufficient to fairly and adequately compensate for her losses and damages, for interest and cost as allowed by law; for punitive damages against defendant Spece and for such other further relief as the court deems appropriate.”