On June 26, 2022, Hibbing Police Department Captain Kris Halvorson and Officer Joe Casey responded to a domestic disturbance call from an apartment building on 9th Avenue West. Both of the residents involved—46-year-old Eric Jarvis and his girlfriend, 43-year-old Kari Petrich—had called 911, but the police officers were unable to determine the nature of the problem, because both residents were highly intoxicated.
During the conversation, Jarvis requested that the officers tase Petrich. When Petrich attempted to speak, Jarvis told her, “Shut up.” The officers did not respond to this threat. They eventually left the apartment and went on with their shift. Neither officer filed a report of their interaction with the couple.
Later that night, Halvorson and Casey responded to another call from the apartment, after Jarvis called 911 to request that Petrich be taken to detox. When they knocked on the door, Ms. Petrich answered and told them, “My head is bleeding, because he fucking hit me in the head.”
Captain Halvorson yelled, “Eric! What do you want?”
Jarvis responded from a back room. “I don’t want shit, dude.”
Halvorson said, “All right, have a good night.” The officers left, with Kari Petrich still standing there. The entire interaction took less than a minute, and, once again, neither officer filed a report of the incident.
Twenty-four hours later, Jarvis called 911 to report Petrich unresponsive. Halvorson and Casey found her on the floor with bruises on her face. Kari Petrich had been murdered by Eric Jarvis after their previous visit.
A wrongful death lawsuit was filed against Captain Halvorson and Officer Casey by Kari Petrich’s family on March 26, 2025.
Ms. Petrich did not show any bruising at the time of her second contact with the Defendant Officers [the day before], meaning that the fatal injuries were sustained after the Defendant Officers left Ms. Petrich with Mr. Jarvis without providing any assistance or investigation in response to her report of domestic assault … The medical examiner opined that, with timely intervention, Ms. Petrich’s death would likely have been avoided.
In August of 2023, Eric Jarvis pled guilty to first-degree manslaughter, for which he is currently serving out his sentence—eight-and-a-half years in prison.
The wrongful death suit draws on Halvorson’s and Casey’s own body camera footage, and alleges that the officers failed to follow the Hibbing Police Department’s policy on domestic abuse when they left the scene after Kari Petrich informed them that Eric Jarvis struck her in the head.
The list of alleged violations follows here:
• The officers did not recognize that Petrich’s claim of being struck constituted “probable cause of domestic abuse.”
• They conducted no investigation.
• They did not attempt to enter the apartment.
• They did not offer to render first aid to Petrich.
• They conducted no “assessment of her wellbeing whatsoever.”
• They did not arrest Jarvis on probable cause of domestic abuse.
• They did not take statements from Jarvis or Petrich.
• They did not remain at the scene long enough to ascertain that the “likelihood of further imminent abuse [had] been eliminated.”
• They did not offer to connect Ms. Petrich with resources for domestic abuse victims.
• They did not provide Petrich with a crime victim notification form.
• They did not report the incident.
The exhibits in the case include an “Expert Witness Report” prepared by Joshua Lego, Deputy Chief of Police of the St. Paul Police Department. After Deputy Chief Lego reviewed the body-cam footage and other evidence in the case, he concluded the following:
Petrich’s is the only [Minnesota domestic violence fatality] in 2022 or 2023 where I believe a thoughtful and professional police investigation and compliance with department policies and training may have prevented a domestic homicide, had another well-trained police officer or commanding officer responded in Casey or Halvorson’s place.
It is my opinion available evidence supports the conclusion that Jarvis fatally injured Petrich after Halvorson and Casey left the scene following the second call for police service on 06/26/2022. I believe that if Halvorson and Casey had conducted a proper investigation and arrested Jarvis instead of leaving him in the apartment, he would not have further opportunity to injure or kill Petrich on or after 06/26/2022 …
It is my opinion that all actions undertaken by Casey and Halvorson, except for knocking on the apartment door and announcing their presence … were contrary to contemporary police training, customs, and practices. I believe evidence supports the conclusion Halvorson and Casey were acting passively, as if they were mere bystanders rather than actively investigating an alleged domestic assault complaint. I further believe they did not exercise their authority as police officers and allowed Jarvis to have the only voice that influenced their investigation.
Notably, Casey and Halvorson spent 30 seconds on the call after Petrich opened the door. During this time, they did not engage her in conversation, attempt to solicit a statement or examine her for evidence that would corroborate her allegation of domestic assault and physical injury to the head.
It is my opinion Halvorson and Casey acted callously when they ignored Petrich and her affirmative and intelligible complaint of domestic assault.
The family of Kari Jo Petrich is seeking $500,000 in damages from Halvorson, Casey, and the City of Hibbing, and is requesting a jury trial.
The defendants have filed an Answer denying all claims of wrongdoing.
The case has been assigned to Judge Shawn Reed, in Duluth. The next hearing is scheduled for June 30, 2025, via Zoom.
