NORMAL - The camera in Normal patrol officer James Merica's squad car comes on at 10:36 p.m., moments after he makes a U-turn on East College Avenue on March 27, 2002. (Watch the video - .wmv file)

Merica tells dispatchers that he's trying to pull over a pickup truck that struck a median as the officer passed the Lancaster Heights apartments.

These are the first moments on a 13-minute videotape taken from Merica's squad after he shot and killed 20-year-old Nathan Ruch.

The Pantagraph obtained a copy of the tape from a civil attorney representing Ruch's parents in a wrongful-death lawsuit against Merica and the town.

The lawsuit was settled during a hearing Tuesday. Margery Ruch, Nathan Ruch's mother, said she now wants Twin City residents to watch the videotape so they can see what happened moments before her son's death.

"People need to see it," Margery Ruch said Tuesday outside attorney David Dorris' office in Bloomington. "I think people can come to their own conclusions after seeing it."

Ruch was shot and killed by Merica after the officer says the Illinois State University student's pickup truck drove toward him on Doud Court.

View of the chase

The video provides a firsthand view from Merica's windshield of the 90-second chase that occurs shortly before Ruch and Merica arrive in Doud Court.

When Merica parks his squad car and gets out, the video image remains focused on a house unrelated to the shooting. Viewers don't see Merica shoot and kill Ruch, but they hear his shotgun fire four times within a span of four seconds.

"Shots fired. He tried to hit me," Merica yells into his body microphone for dispatchers listening on the other end.

Ruch's pickup then rams into a house. All viewers can see is a white cloud of smoke billowing as Ruch's pickup truck's wheels continue to spin, burning up on a nearby concrete driveway.

Audio records discussions

The continuing audio contains Merica's conversations with rescue workers and other officers who arrive on the scene. In those discussions, Merica explained to other officers about why he used deadly force.

Merica is eventually relieved of his weapon and even calls his wife, saying, "I'm going to be late. I'll call you later when I can talk more. There's a big mess here."