After a lengthy delay in court proceedings Tuesday morning, the involuntary manslaughter case against Idaho Falls Police Department Officer Elias Cerdas for the shooting death of Joseph Johnson was abruptly dismissed.

Cerdas was charged with involuntary manslaughter after he shot and killed Johnson in his own backyard in February 2021.

The trial in the case started Monday. The case was dismissed on the condition that Cerdas undergo 100 hours of firearms and use of force training and that he remain on "modified duty." Cerdas has been on modified duty since the shooting, spending more than a year on desk duty for the Idaho Falls Police Department.

The case could be refiled if Cerdas doesn't complete the training, court officials said. Once the training is completed, he will be allowed to return to patrol duties.

Cerdas told reporters he was "very relieved" after the case was dismissed. He hugged friends and family as they celebrated the dismissal.

Defense Attorney Dennis Wilkinson said he believed the court reached the correct decision, saying, "I am relieved for him and happy for his family."

Neither the defense attorneys nor the prosecution discussed how and why they reached a deal to dismiss the case after a single day of testimony. Wilkinson said only that both sides "weighed their options" before reaching a deal. Lead Deputy Attorney General Jeff Nye said he was under "strict orders" not to comment on the case.

An attorney for Bree Johnson, the widow of Joseph Johnson, was not available when reached for comment Tuesday morning. Bree Johnson filed a tort claim in July indicating she intends to sue Cerdas and the Idaho Falls Police Department for her husband's death.

Cerdas shot and killed Johnson while searching with other law enforcement officers for Tanner Shoesmith, a man with a history of violence against law enforcement, who had fled from a traffic stop. A witness reported they saw Shoesmith running with a gun. Johnson was reportedly wearing clothing similar to Shoesmith's, most notably a black shirt.

Cerdas was arraigned in July after a grand jury indicted him for the manslaughter charge. According to court records detailing expected witness statements, Idaho State Police Detective Josh Tuttle concluded Cerdas was not justified in shooting Johnson following an investigation by the Eastern Idaho Critical Incident Task Force.

Tuttle concluded Cerdas fired at Johnson before giving him adequate time to obey the instructions of another officer, Hector Kistemann, to drop his gun.

“The time the defendant gave for Mr. Johnson to comply was less than a reasonable amount of time for Mr. Johnson to comply with the command or otherwise demonstrate that he was not a threat to the officers,” a disclosure Tuttle's expected testimony stated.

Body camera footage from Cerdas' perspective showed Cerdas and Kistemann approach Johnson after Johnson yelled he had found Shoesmith. Kistemann ordered Johnson to drop his gun, which Johnson was holding pointed down. Kistemann then ordered Johnson to drop his gun a second time, and Cerdas shot Johnson.

Defense attorneys Wilkinson and Curtis Smith also focused on how fast the interaction was, saying their client had to make a split-second decision, and that he acted reasonably with the information available to him.

"Officer Cerdas, with hindsight, has been tortured every day with what happened," Wilkinson said in his opening statement Monday.

Though the lead investigator and grand jury concluded Cerdas acted improperly, Cerdas received support from local officers. The Idaho Falls Fraternal Order of Police Lodge released a statement after Cerdas' indictment stating its belief that he would be found not guilty.

Idaho Falls Police Chief Bryce Johnson (no relation to the victim) was at the trial and congratulated Cerdas on the result. The police chief was listed as a witness for the defense and would have testified had the trial proceeded.