A former federal prosecutor says prosecutors in Tulsa were right to swiftly charge a white police officer with first-degree manslaughter in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man.
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Chicago-based defense attorney Phil Turner says prosecutors – in his words – “must have thought charges were warranted and we can always upgrade the charge later”.
In this photo made from a September 16, 2016 police video, Terence Crutcher, left, with his arms up is pursued by police officers as he walks next to his stalled SUV moments before he was shot and killed by one of the officers in Tulsa, Okla.
Kansas City police are trying to determine whether an officer posted on Facebook that the killing of an unarmed black man by a white Oklahoma police officer was a “good shoot”. They said Friday in a statement that Shelby “unlawfully and unnecessarily” shot Crutcher. He walks away from Shelby towards his auto.
Shelby was charged with first-degree manslaughter, which is punishable by a minimum of four years in prison.
He said Crutcher’s head was tilted but his eyes were on Shelby.
President Leigh Goodson says Crutcher brought to the school “his talents, hopes and dreams of creating a successful life by dedicating himself to completing a degree”. A voice heard on the police radio says: “Shots fired!” “But we must remain patient as the case works its way through the justice system, where a jury likely will be asked to decide whether officer Betty Shelby is guilty of the crime”.
Footage from the scene shows Terence Crutcher walking toward his broken-down SUV with his hands up. They held signs reading, “I can’t breathe”, “Black Lives Matter”, and “Am I Next”. It added that there was “no credible information” to suggest that any of the gatherings, protests, or rallies will not be peaceful. Police also quickly provided videos of the shooting to black community leaders and members of Crutcher’s family before releasing them to the public.
The officer “reacted unreasonably by escalating the situation from a confrontation with Mr. Crutcher, who was not responding to verbal commands and was walking away from her with his hands held up, becoming emotionally involved to the point that she overreacted”, according to an affidavit filed with the charge. Shelby was also concerned about Crutcher repeatedly reaching toward his pockets because a person with a weapon often touches it to make sure it’s still there, Wood said.
Officers have also been instructed to be hyper-sensitive of their surroundings when they respond to calls and to not take insults or criticism personally, Tuell said. “We will continue to be transparent and ensure the system carries out its responsibility to provide justice”. In this photo made from a September 16, 2016 police video, Terence Crutcher, left, lowers his right arm as he is pursued by police officers moments before he was shot and killed by one of the officers in Tulsa, Okla. Crutcher’s vehicle stalled on the way to a community college where he was taking a class. Helicopter and dashboard camera footage show that Crutcher was walking away from Shelby toward his auto with his hands raised before several officers surrounded him.
There’s no close-up, unobscured view of Crutcher before Shelby fired the fatal shot.
Shelby’s attorney, Benjamin L. Crump, told ABC News Crutcher was not obeying commands. Police said Crutcher did not have a gun on him or in his vehicle.
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Police in Tulsa, Oklahoma, broadly released dashcam and aerial footage, 911 calls and police radio traffic with unusual swiftness following last Friday’s shooting death of an unarmed black man by a white officer. “I got a subject who won’t show me his hands”, but nothing captures what went on between Shelby and Crutcher prior to other officers showing up.
