WAUKESHA, Wis. — A Waukesha Police officer who shot a man during a hostage situation at the Sunset Drive Meijer has been cleared of criminal wrongdoing after an independent investigation, the Waukesha County district attorney said Thursday. District Attorney Lesli Boese concluded that the officer’s use of deadly force was justified because it was necessary to protect the hostage, the officer, other law enforcement personnel and members of the public. Her decision means the officer will not face criminal charges. Police said the incident began July 30, when Anthony Lehman called dispatchers and reported that he had a knife and was holding someone hostage inside the grocery store. Lehman asked to speak with a hostage negotiator. Officers responded to the store, and one officer fired after believing Lehman was about to stab the hostage, according to police. Lehman was critically wounded. Investigators also determined that a bullet unintentionally struck the hostage’s thumb. The hostage was treated at a hospital and released. Lehman spent more than two weeks hospitalized and now faces six felony counts, including first-degree reckless injury related to the thumb wound, false imprisonment, endangering safety and making terrorist threats. He had no adult criminal record, according to authorities. Waukesha Police Capt. Dan Baumann confirmed that the officer has returned to full duty. The officer’s name has not been released in the information available about the case. Police also said they will not yet release the investigative file, including evidence gathered during the review. Baumann said the records could be withheld while Lehman’s prosecution is pending because releasing them could affect the fairness of future proceedings and make it more difficult to seat an impartial jury. The decision leaves the public without access, for now, to the full evidentiary record behind the shooting. Wisconsin law generally addresses the release of materials after a district attorney reviews an officer-involved shooting, but police said those requirements must be balanced against public-records obligations and the protections owed in an active criminal case.