A jury has found IRS agent Larry Brown not guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of fellow agent Patrick Bauer at a gun range in August 2023. The verdict was delivered after approximately 90 minutes of deliberation.
As the decision was read, Brown broke down in tears and was supported by his attorneys.
During closing arguments, federal prosecutors contended that Brown’s gross negligence directly led to Bauer’s death. In contrast, Brown’s defense argued that the shooting was an accident exacerbated by systemic failures within the IRS, including the absence of an emergency evacuation plan—a standard procedure, according to defense experts—which contributed to delays in Bauer’s medical treatment and ultimately cost him his life.
Due to the IRS’s lack of an emergency response plan, agents were unsure of the correct address to provide to dispatchers, causing a five-minute delay in emergency vehicles being sent. The ambulance took nearly 13 minutes to arrive—five minutes longer than the industry standard—though a fire engine with EMTs reached the scene within that time frame. Once Bauer was in the ambulance, it took another 14 minutes to transport him to a hospital.
Shortly after the shooting, IRS agents declined an offer from other federal agents to transport Bauer to the hospital themselves, a decision that, according to Brown’s attorney, Phoenix federal criminal defense lawyer Jason Lamm, could have saved nearly 20 minutes.
Lamm highlighted the testimony of Dr. Kenji Inaba, a Los Angeles-based trauma surgeon, who stated that Bauer would have survived had he reached the emergency room 15 to 20 minutes earlier. No prosecution witness refuted this assertion.
Brown's defense also suggested alternative scenarios that prosecutors and FBI investigators failed to explore, including the possibility that Bauer may have handled the weapon himself or asked Brown to unholster it.
Lamm criticized the government’s investigation for failing to secure key evidence or conduct forensic tests that could have clarified the incident. After the shooting, IRS agents removed the loaded weapon and spent shell casing from the ground and placed them on a counter, yet the gun was not visible in later crime scene photographs.
"The fact remains that since this trial began, the government has not proven beyond a reasonable doubt how this happened," Lamm stated. "They have not proven why it happened—because they simply don't know."
In his closing argument, Lamm emphasized to the jury, "The sheer lack of preparedness set off a chain of failures that, had they been avoided, would have meant Bauer would be alive today."
Had he been convicted, Brown could have faced up to eight years in prison.
If you or a loved one is facing federal charges, contact the Law Office of Jason Lamm at (602) 663-9100 for an experienced and aggressive defense.