Centre Country District Attorney Bernie Cantorna has directed state police to investigate new allegations raised against State College police officers who were involved in the shooting death of Osaze Osagie, a 29-year-old Black man killed in March 2019.

In an amended lawsuit filed Monday, Osagie’s family claimed the former State College police officer who shot their son was “mentally unstable and violent” and “unfit for duty” when he was assigned to go to Osagie’s apartment the day of the shooting.

The suit also claimed a now-retired police captain received information about former officer M. Jordan Pieniazek’s alleged “excessive drinking and domestic abuse” and did not take steps to ensure he was fit for duty in the days leading up to Osagie’s shooting.

Cantorna, Centre County’s highest-ranking prosecutor, said he wasn’t aware of those allegations when he cleared the officers of wrongdoing back in May 2019. He forwarded the allegations to the state’s Rockview station, located in Bellefonte, for investigation.

“Once that process is complete, my office will report back to the public,” Cantorna said in a statement Thursday. “As always, the main objective of the district attorney’s office is to serve and protect our community through the fair and ethical pursuit of justice.”

The borough, meanwhile, disputed the Osagie family’s claims in a responding statement issued Wednesday. State College Mayor Ron Filippelli and Borough Manager Tom Fountaine said the borough didn’t withhold any information about the shooting.

“This amended complaint, like the original complaint before, contains false claims, and half-truths, while also leaving out critical facts and context to understanding the incident, the background and the persons involved,” Filippelli and Fountaine wrote in a joint statement.

On Thursday, the State College NAACP called the borough’s response “insulting and shameful.” Additionally, the chapter called on the involved officers, including Cantorna, to resign.

Pieniazek, along with Sgt. Christopher Hill and Lt. Keith Robb, arrived at 29-year-old Osagie’s Old Boalsburg Road apartment on March 20, 2019, to serve a mental health warrant. Osagie’s father, Sylvester, contacted police a day earlier for help finding his son after receiving text messages from him suggesting that there would be “trouble” with the police “in a little bit” that may result in his death. He believed Osagie, who had a history of mental illness, may have been off his medication.

After allegedly yelling “shoot me, kill me,” according to a previous filing in the case by the borough, Osagie held a serrated knife in his hand as he charged at the officers in the narrow basement hallway outside his apartment. Hill deployed a Taser, but it was ineffective and then Pieniazek fatally shot Osagie while retreating backward.

When he cleared the officers of wrongdoing following a state investigation, Cantorna said the officers were in a “life-or-death situation” and attempted to back away when Osagie charged at them with a knife. The state police Heritage Affairs Section found racial bias did not play a role in the shooting of Osagie.

StateCollege.com’s Geoff Rushton contributed to this report.