“Were the last two rounds fired by the officers necessary?”
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“I anticipate that some of this video will answer numerous questions out there in this community”, Dyer said, the Los Angeles Times reports.
An internal police investigation into the shooting is ongoing.
Officers fatally shot Dylan Noble, 19.
Officers reportedly suspected the teenager of having a gun – in reality, he had a four-inch, transparent plastic receptacle containing clay, Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer said during a press conference, CNN reported.
Authorities say the confrontation started when police received reports of a man carrying a rifle. When he moved his arms, the first officer fired again. When they pulled up near Noble, he sped away from, immediately raising their suspicions. The pickup driver kept going for another half mile. Dyer said he had the opportunity to meet with Noble’s family, and said he knows they are going through “an incredible amount of pain”.
Both officers have been placed on administrative leave. The video shows him repeatedly ignoring officers’ commands to stop and to show both his hands. That same cop waited about 30 seconds before walking up to Noble and shooting him again.
“We flood communities with so many guns that it’s easier for a teenager to get their hands on a glock than a computer or a book”, he said.
“Get on the ground now!” officers continually shout.
You can hear the officer ordering Noble to show him both of his hands.
“He got murdered”, Noble said. He can be seen appearing to hide his hands behind his back.
Police in Fresno, California have released body camera videos showing two officers fatally shooting an unarmed white man amid renewed scrutiny across the United States over the use of force by police. He walks several more steps then turns around. In these tense moments, Noble has one hand in the air and one alternatively in the air and behind his back.
“What do you have in your hand?” one asks.
Noble did not comply with officers’ orders and turned around to face them.
Noble led police to a Chevron gas station where he stopped his truck, with officers parked a few yards behind him.
According to the Times, one of the officers involved in the shooting is a 20-year veteran with no previous involvement in a police shooting. Noble’s hands clearly had no weapon by then and even though you could see him reach into his waistband, it looks like it’d be tough for him to be a threat from that position. About 14 seconds later, the reserve officer, who has 17 years of service, fires once.
Dyer said he meant to make the video public last Friday, but he held off because of the shooting deaths of police in Dallas the night before.
Officials said they showed the video to Noble’s father and stepfather last week.
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“We’re shocked and appalled that the city of Fresno would continue to defend the actions of its officers”, said Stuart Chandler, Noble’s mother’s attorney. He said he hopes it would not spark further violence amid anti-police sentiment in Fresno and across the country. “This is a traffic stop”.
