District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler announced Thursday afternoon that Tulsa County will be charging Shelby with first-degree manslaughter and that a warrant has been issued for the officer’s arrest.
Advertisement
Prosecutors offered two possible theories: Shelby killed Crutcher impulsively in a fit of anger or wrongly killed him as she sought to detain him. “Nothing will bring back our father, our son, our brother, our nephew, our cousin”.
“In the matter of the death of Terence Crutcher”, he said.
Funeral services have been set for the Oklahoma man who was shot and killed last week by a Tulsa police officer.
The claims made by Betty Shelby, by way of her attorney are that Terence Crutcher was shot because he had not been following the orders he was given and also that she thought he had been reaching through the window of his SUV.
The police department said that he wasn’t armed and didn’t have a weapon in his vehicle. Family attorneys have said the vehicle’s window was rolled up, and he wasn’t reaching inside. Crutcher was mumbling to himself and wouldn’t answer Shelby’s questions, the document says. She was responding to a separate call for a domestic disturbance when she came upon Crutcher in the road.
Crutcher was shot to death September 16 by Officer Betty Shelby, who was charged Thursday with first-degree manslaughter.
One week ago, Officer Shelby fired a single shot at Terance Crutcher, who had his hands in the air at the time, sparking outrage across the nation. A man inside a police helicopter says: “That looks like a bad dude, too”.
In the videos, the officers surround Crutcher, who suddenly drops to the ground.
President Barack Obama says recent reports of unarmed African Americans being shot by police “should be a source of concern for all Americans”.
The affidavit filed Thursday indicates that Shelby “cleared the driver’s side front” of Crutcher’s vehicle before she began interacting with him, suggesting she may have known there was no gun on the driver’s side of the vehicle.
Among the definitions in Oklahoma for first-degree manslaughter is a killing “perpetrated unnecessarily either while resisting an attempt by the person killed to commit a crime, or after such attempt shall have failed”.
If convicted, she faces at least four years in prison, lawyers said. Kunzweiler said that he was certain manslaughter was the most adequate charge in the situation.
“It’s important to note that despite the heightened tensions felt by all, which seemingly beg for an emotional response and reaction, our community has consistently demonstrated the willingness to respect the judicial process”, he said.
Advertisement
“Our goal as a family is to ensure that this never happens to an innocent citizen”, she said, adding that she’s “humble” and “grateful” to the community for their support.
