Judge officially dismisses homicide charges against DEA agent in death of Salem cyclist

A federal judge on Thursday officially dismissed the negligent homicide charge against a Drug Enforcement Administration agent in the killing of a Salem cyclist in 2023.

The official dismissal came one month after U.S. District Court Judge Michael McShane ruled Samuel Landis was immune from criminal prosecution and would dismiss the case against him.

After a full day of witness testimony and arguments on Nov. 25, McShane determined Landis was protected by the Supremacy Clause because the deadly crash happened during the course of a surveillance operation.

Landis, 39, was charged with criminally negligent homicide on allegations that he hit cyclist Marganne Allen, 53, with his truck after running a stop sign at the intersection of High and Leslie streets SE during a surveillance operation on March 28, 2023.

His lawyers argued that because the crash happened during the course of Landis’ work as a DEA agent, he should not be held criminally liable. The case was moved to federal court because federal immunity is not a defense in circuit court.

Marion County prosecutors argued Landis was not in danger or in an emergency when he hit Allen and did not “behave in an objectively reasonable manner,” making the immunity defense moot.

McShane noted in his opinion there were no disputes in the case of material fact; both parties agreed Landis ran the stop sign and Allen had the right-of-way.

“They very clearly agree, as does the Court, that Margane Allene’s untimely death is a tragic accident that could have been avoided,” McShane said in his opinion. “The lone issue the parties disagree on is, in this instance, a legal one: whether it was ‘necessary and proper’ for Landis to run the stop sign to perform his duties that day as a DEA Special Agent enforcing the nation’s drug laws.

Applying the undisputed facts to the caselaw, the answer to that questionis “yes,” McShane said.

Fatal March 2023 crash in Salem

Allen was riding her bike home from work on High Street when Landis was accused of running the stop sign at Leslie Street. He had no lights or sirens on and said he was trying to keep up with the surveillance team.

Allen collided with his truck. Neighbors and witnesses rushed to provide first aid, and she was taken to Salem Health where she was pronounced dead.

Allen, a mother of two, was the program manager for Oregon’s Agricultural Water Quality Resources Department, according to state records.

A neighbor who witnessed the aftermath of the crash said during the hearing she’d seen Allen more than a dozen times commuting to and from work. She said Allen was always a safe cyclist but the behavior of drivers in the area was often dangerous and reckless.

Video footage before the crash showed Allen riding in bright colors and with a flashing light on the front of her bike.

Her family attended the Nov. 25 hearing but asked for privacy. Through a victim advocate, they thanked the Marion County District Attorney’s Office for their dedication and tireless efforts and the Victim’s Assistance specialist for their care and guidance.

Allen’s husband, Mark Meleason, later thanked the media for respecting the family’s privacy and covering the almost two-year-long legal saga.

“I believe this is a story that needs to be told,” he said.

Meleason said the preliminary ruling from McShane granted Landis immunity for killing his soulmate.

Though it was not intentional, the crash was not an “unfortunate accident,” he added.

“His driving behavior was like playing Russian Roulette with his vehicle aimed at the public,” Meleason said, adding that he understands public safety employees are trained in defensive driving and safe driving.

He said he believes Landis’ driving was unjustifiable and resulted in the death of Allen.

Landis did not face immediate charges, and the case was transferred from Salem Police to Keizer Police due to a potential conflict of interest. Months later, the Marion County District Attorney’s Office charged Landis with criminally negligent homicide.

Landis’ attorneys argued he was entitled to use the federal defense of immunity under the Supremacy Clause because he was actively surveilling a drug dealer while on duty. His case was taken out of local circuit court and into federal court.

The move allowed the agent to argue for law enforcement immunity as a possible defense. Federal law provides law enforcement officers with a potential criminal defense of immunity from prosecution. Such a defense does not exist under Oregon state law.

After McShane ruled the case would be heard in federal court, the Oregon Department of Justice appealed the decision.

The case then went to the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Seattle.

The appeals judges agreed with Landis’ attorneys and denied the Oregon Department of Justice’s petition to return the case to circuit court.

The case then returned to U.S. District Court in Eugene on Nov. 25.

DEA agent’s attorneys argue for immunity, dismissal

Landis took the stand during the November hearing. He said he grew up in a poor area and wanted to go into law enforcement to protect communities like his from dangerous drugs. He worked for Border Patrol after college and joined the DEA in 2016.

He said he conducted between 150 and 200 surveillance operations as an agent.

Both he and the other DEA agents who testified said it is common for law enforcement officers to violate traffic laws like stop signs, speeding, lane changes and stop lights while conducting surveillance on drug traffickers.

“We have to do things in order to stay with them,” he said.

He said he ended up at the intersection of Leslie and High streets after the subject they were tailing on Liberty Street made a sudden turn onto Mission Street.

Landis said he remembered slowing down as he reached the stop sign and checking the intersection. Police estimate he entered the intersection at 18 mph.

Landis grew tearful when asked about the crash.

“I felt something collide into the driver’s side of my vehicle,” he said. “I got out and realized what happened.”

He said he got on his hands and knees to talk to Allen, but she was unresponsive.

In their motion for dismissal, David Angeli, an attorney for Landis, said the DEA plays a critical role in combating the fentanyl crisis in the Salem area. Surveillance is a key tool used by the agency, and the mission in March 2023 was part of Operation Backsplash, which resulted in 11 arrests and the seizure of more than 178 pounds of fentanyl from Salem’s streets, Angeli said.

Angeli said Landis was doing his job as a DEA agent when the crash occurred. DEA policy authorizes violating traffic laws while conducting some law enforcement duties.

“He believed he made a reasonable decision, based on everything he knew at the moment, to slow down and advance into the intersection to try and catch up with the surveillance team and regain his position,” Angeli said in the motion. “And objectively, given everything Agent Landis knew, that belief was reasonable, notwithstanding its tragic outcome.”

Prosecutors fight to keep charges

State prosecutors argued that Landis’ behavior was not reasonable. They pointed to police testimony that he was speeding in a residential area at around 37 mph before the crash and paused to check the intersection before he even had a clear view.

The question is whether entering a blind intersection during a surveillance operation, not an emergency, was a reasonable position to take, said Marion County Deputy District Attorney David Wilson during the Nov. 25 hearing.

He argued Supremacy Clause immunity is not absolute and the state has an interest in protecting citizens from reckless drivers.

“(Landis) violated DEA policy in the manner he was driving and it was in no way reasonable for him to blindly run a stop sign in an unfamiliar area while it was raining heavily,” Wilson said.

McShane ultimately agreed with the defense, ordering the charges against Landis to be dismissed. He found Landis was acting in his capacity as a federal agent and his conduct was necessary and proper given the circumstances.

“The Supremacy Clause grants Agent Landis immunity in this prosecution,” he said.

In his opinion, McShane noted the DEA was engaged in a longstanding battle against Mexican cartels flooding the United States with fentanyl. Cases are built over months, and agents must conduct complicated surveillance operations.

“This covert gathering of evidence is critical to the DEA’s mission of building cases against Drug Trafficking Organizations,” McShane said. “It is with the above context that the Court must view Agent Landis’s actions on March 28, 2023.”

There is no question that Landis “greatly miscalculated” the safety of his actions, McShane said.

However, he added, a federal agent seeking federal immunity is not required “to show that his action was in fact necessary or in retrospect justifiable, only that he reasonably thought it to be.”

“That Agent Landis was wrong does not make his honest belief objectively unreasonable,” McShane said. “Because Agent Landis is entitled to federal immunity from the state charges, this action is dismissed.”

Prosecutors could appeal McShane’s determination. Additionally, Landis could face a civil case, where the threshold for immunity is different.

For questions, comments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth at wmwoodworth@statesmanjournal.com, call 503-910-6616 or follow on X at @wmwoodworth

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Judge drops homicide charges against DEA agent in Salem cyclist death

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