A Federal Court jury late Thursday afternoon ruled in favor of three Hamilton County Sheriff's Department deputies who were involved in the shooting death of Thomas Earl Jones.

The jury in the courtroom of Judge Curtis Collier declined to order any monetary award to the executor of the Jones estate.

Attorney Robin Flores told the jury on Thursday morning that the deputies used excessive force. He said, "You don't keep shooting when someone is going down."

But attorney Jerry Tidwell said the deputies fired only after Jones started toward Deputy Denise Short with a knife and repeatedly told them they would have to shoot him.

Attorney Tidwell said, "He apparently wanted them to shoot him for some reason."

He called Jones "a very troubled, alcohol-soaked, drug-addled man."

Attorney Flores said tests showed no drugs in Jones' system, though he was more than triple drunk.

He said he was not a threat to the officers, noting that he still had a cigarette clenched between his fingers when his body arrived at the morgue.

Attorney Tidwell said the testimony of witness Kenneth Hafley that the officers shot Jones as he climbed a fence and continued to shoot him as he was down on the ground was not believable. He said he had told a different story before and that other witnesses did not see him at the scene.

Attorney Tidwell said Deputy Short fired twice as he approached her. He said Deputy Eston Pyle fired twice from a side angle. He said Deputy Nathan Sampley fired five shots from the rear, including four that struck the victim, in the back. He said Deputy Sampley was acting to protect Deputy Short.

Medical Examiner Dr. Frank King said there were nine bullet wounds on the victim from the incident May 7, 2007. But he said two of the bullets went through the victim's arm and on into his torso.

Dr. King said Jones' blood alcohol level was so high (.33) that he would have had to consume 15-17 drinks within a couple of hours of the shooting.

All three deputies said they fired after Jones kept telling them that they would have to shoot him. They said he was from a few feet to eight feet away from Deputy Short when they fired.

Deputy Short had gone to check out a report of a stolen vehicle and she said she found an uncooperative Jones. He drove away to a residence on Dolly Pond Road.

The officers said Jones ignored numerous commands to surrender.

Donnie Leroy Linam, administrator of the Jones estate, filed the suit.