The Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office issued letters to two law enforcement agencies Thursday notifying them that the use of a firearm by officers in two recent fatal shootings was lawful.

The first shooting occurred in South Jordan on May 28.

Wade Russell Pennington, 41, of Kamas, was shot after police said he led them on a chase and rammed patrol cars after he was cornered.

The district attorney's office said that officers with the South Jordan Police Department tried to stop a suspicious vehicle driven by Pennington that they believed might have been involved in a burglary.

After they made repeated attempts to stop the vehicle, Pennington continued to a cul-de-sac at approximately 2400 W. 7720 South, where he purposely collided with two officer's patrol cars multiple times, investigators said.

Pennington's vehicle came to rest between a cinderblock wall and one of the officer's cars. The driver's side windows of the two cars were facing each other approximately two feet apart. The officer in the car closest to Pennington told him to remain in the SUV, but Pennington lunged out the window and toward the officer, according to the district attorney's office.

"(The South Jordan officer) fired two rounds at Pennington, striking him both times," the district attorney's office said.

The second incident happened June 26 in Millcreek.

Several callers alerted the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office that multiple shots had been fired from an apartment at 1012 E. Olympus Ridge Cove. As deputies approached the building, they heard several shots.

A deputy and a sergeant in the sheriff's office took positions under the carport where they could see George Deray Huntzinger, 65, standing on a balcony, according to the district attorney's office. Huntzinger left the balcony and reappeared on a stairwell leading to the ground level, carrying a shotgun.

Huntzinger reached the ground level and was scanning the area when the deputy told Huntzinger to drop his weapon. Huntzinger turned towards the deputy and fired, according to investigators.

The deputy then fired a round at Huntzinger, but did not hit him. The man then returned to his apartment and reappeared on the balcony.

"Mr. Huntzinger scanned the area below, then raised his weapon in the direction of the officers beneath him," the district attorney's office said. "(The sergeant) fired one round, striking Mr. Huntzinger in the head."

The district attorney's office reviews officer-involved shootings to determine if the officer's actions were legally justified under Utah Code.

E-mail: ethomas@desnews.com