Homicide is the act of killing a human being.
Determining that the decedent was shot to death by someone else - Relatively easy.
Determining that the deceased was a human - Also relatively easy.
I'd like to think that the reporter was the one who used such a useless phrase, not the PD's spokesman. /rant
Stupid reporting is one of my pet peeves, and could lead to lines reading, "His CAT was ruled a FELINE." /o.k. the rant is really over this time
I'm sure it *was* the PD's spokesperson who said it (since that's who they quoted).
Until there are autopsy results and an investigation, the ME will issue a preliminary ruling that the death is either (1) a homicide; (2) a suicide; (3) from natural causes; or (4) of unknown or undetermined cause.
Not until the follow-up will those generic labels be fleshed out in more detail and sometimes changed.