Tulsa police officer charged in man’s death
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Officer Betty Shelby, in an undated file photo. Police say Tulsa officer Shelby fired the fatal shot that killed 40-year-old Terence Crutcher on Sept. 16.
TULSA, Okla. » Prosecutors charged a white Oklahoma police officer with first-degree manslaughter today, less than a week after she killed an unarmed black man on a city street and just days after police released graphic videos, saying in court documents the officer “reacted unreasonably.”
Tulsa officer Betty Shelby fatally shot 40-year-old Terence Crutcher on Sept. 16. The affidavit filed with the charge says Shelby “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 over reacted.”
Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler said arrangements were being made for Shelby’s surrender.
The swift action in Tulsa stood in contrast to Charlotte, North Carolina, where police refused under mounting pressure today to release video of the shooting of another black man this week and the National Guard was called in to try to a head off a third night of violence. Demonstrations in Tulsa since Crutcher’s death have been consistently peaceful.
Dashcam and aerial footage of the shooting and its aftermath showed Crutcher walking away from Shelby with his arms in the air. The footage does not offer a clear view of when Shelby fired the single shot that killed Crutcher. Her attorney has said Crutcher was not following police commands and that Shelby opened fire when the man began to reach into his SUV window.
But Crutcher’s family immediately discounted that claim, saying the father of four posed no threat to the officers. They also pointed to an enlarged photo from police footage that appears to show Crutcher’s window was rolled up. And police said Crutcher did not have a gun on him or in his vehicle.
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The affidavit filed today also indicates that Shelby “cleared the driver’s side front” of Crutcher’s vehicle before she began interacting with Crutcher, suggesting she may have known there was no gun on the driver’s side of the vehicle.
The affidavit says Shelby told police homicide investigators that “she was in fear for her life and thought Mr. Crutcher was going to kill her. When she began following Mr. Crutcher to the vehicle with her duty weapon drawn, she was yelling for him to stop and get on his knees repeatedly.”
Crutcher was wearing “baggy clothes” but Shelby “was not able to see any weapons or bulges indicating a weapon was present,” the affidavit states.
Prosecutors offer two possible theories in charging documents: that Shelby killed Crutcher impulsively in a fit of anger or that she wrongly killed him as she sought to detain him. The case first goes to a judge, who will decide whether there is enough evidence for a trial. Lee F. Berlin, a Tulsa-based defense lawyer and a former assistant district attorney in Oklahoma, said prosecutors may at some point decide to move forward with only one of the theories or could present both to jurors and let them decide.
If convicted, Shelby faces between four years and life in prison.
Crutcher’s twin sister, Tiffany Crutcher, said the family was pleased criminal charges were filed and urged a vigorous prosecution that leads to a conviction.
“Our goal now is to ensure that this never happens to another innocent citizen,” Tiffany Crutcher said. “We’re going to break the chains of injustice. We’re going to break the chains of police brutality.”
Tulsa Mayor Dewey Bartlett said police worked quickly to provide Kunzweiler with the information he needed to decide whether to charge the officer.
“I appreciate their efforts as well as the District Attorney’s usual thorough evaluation of the rules of law for which we are all accountable,” Bartlett said in a written statement. “We will continue to be transparent and ensure the system carries out its responsibility to provide justice.”
Shelby, who joined the Tulsa Police Department in December 2011, was en route to a domestic violence call when she encountered Crutcher’s vehicle abandoned on a city street, straddling the center line. Shelby did not activate her patrol car’s dashboard camera, so no footage exists of what first happened between the two before other officers arrived.
The police footage shows Crutcher approaching the driver’s side of the SUV, then more officers walk up and Crutcher appears to lower his hands and place them on the vehicle. A man inside a police helicopter overhead says: “That looks like a bad dude, too. Probably on something.”
Police Sgt. Dave Walker has said investigators found a vial of the drug PCP in Crutcher’s vehicle. Shelby’s attorney, Scott Wood, has said that Shelby completed drug-recognition expert training and thought Crutcher was acting like he might be under the influence of PCP.
Attorneys for Crutcher’s family said the family didn’t know whether drugs were found in the SUV, but that even if they were, it wouldn’t justify the shooting.
A toxicology report could take several weeks.
Wood did not immediately return phone messages seeking comment about Shelby being charged.
In the videos, the officers surround Crutcher and he suddenly drops to the ground. A voice heard on the police radio says: “Shots fired!” The officers back away and Crutcher is left unattended on the street for about two minutes before an officer puts on medical gloves and begins to attend to him.
“The tragic circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Crutcher are on the hearts and minds of many people in this community,” Kunzweiler said. “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.”
At least two dozen people gathered outside the courthouse after the district attorney announced the officer was charged. Later, a peaceful rally was held in front of City Hall. Some demonstrators expressed disappointed Shelby wasn’t charged with first-degree murder, but others considered Thursday’s announcement a victory.
“Today we can say without a shadow of a doubt that the system has worked for black lives,” said activist Marq Lewis, an organizer of the civil rights group We the People Oklahoma, which led the rally in front of City Hall. “We are getting something done in Tulsa that no other city is getting done.”
Earlier this year, a former volunteer deputy with the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office was sentenced to four years in prison after he was convicted of second-degree manslaughter in the shooting death of Eric Harris, who was also black and unarmed.
34 responses to “Tulsa police officer charged in man’s death”
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Sad. If anything she should have fired a warning shot. Bet he drops to the ground. Unfortunately she made a bad decision.
It appears to be very bad police work. She should never have shot to kill in any case. Shoot at the leg to stop him. How could she have confused his intention? I just do not know until all facts are known.
(There might however, have been a better outcome had the officer on the right (the accused officer) been aware that the officer on the left had also perceived a threat and was deploying his Taser at almost the same moment she chose to employ deadly force.)
(Of course, it’s really easy to say “what if” when one is not there and not faced with split-second decisions. Presumably, all of the information will come out in court and a just and proper decision rendered. I really don’t want to be guilty of Monday-morning Quarterbacking.)
Right, standard tactic when using taser. One pulls out deadly force, other pulls Less- lethal….both officer need to communicate. May have been a failure to communicate between two.
This particular incident took precedent over a domestic violence call? I don’t know…
Police don’t shot at legs, arms, etc. You watch to much TV.
“to” is “too”
The only place you’ll ever see police officers fire “a warning shot” is on TV. Same goes for “shooting to wound” or shooting the tires out from under a fleeing vehicle. There are really good reasons for this.
Yup…..had to suspend a guy for that, got caught trying to shoot out tires of a stolen car on the H3 during a pursuit, cameras caught him. No pay for 30 days. He actually hurt his family. The true life lesson. Today a sergeant, has done nothing wrong since.
(I had to investigate the Remington 870 one on Sand Island years ago. Felt sorry for the officer who quickly went on “vacation.”)
Police don’t use warning shots. It doesn’t make sense to do so.
thus an innocent man is dead…
And an incompetent, rookie officer is going to prison. Tulsa PD helicopter video shows the driver’s side window was up. She lied when she said she saw him reach into the car.
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/09/21/world/lawyer-white-tulsa-policewoman-killed-black-motorist-says-ignored-cops-commands/
Instead of whipping up the frenzy even more, it might be better to allow the investigation to answer the questions. From another perspective: http://bearingarms.com/bob-o/2016/09/20/terence-crutcher-shot-hands-heres-definitive-proof/. Like the writer of this article said, no one is claiming the cop is innocent, but at this point, no one should be declaring guilt either. Facts are what they are, no matter how much we want them to match our narrative.
hawaiikone – A pro gun article? Oh puhleeze. Shoddy, cub reporter with fish wrapper quality.
What specifically did you object to in the article? If you actually bothered to read it..
New thoughts are to never let any of your children become a police officer. Too much animosity against law enforcement. That is the message to be sent now.
In this case, “too much animosity” toward a now-dead black man who was unarmed and had car trouble.
Yep pretty amazing how the guy went from stranded motorist to dead guy. Along the way some guy in a police chopper calls him a “big bad dude”, which alone is profiling and best, racist at worst.
Sad situation but i guess everything points against her. I think a lot of times something like this could be avoided if the people would just listen to the commands given by the officers. This is my personal opinion of course.
just listen to the commands…what about our rights to travel freely in our country? What our right against self-incrimination? What about our right to remain silent? A man with a stalled car (who was probably upset that he had to deal with it) and then have to deal with cops questions, insinuations, accusations? A big bad dude must be up to something right? Scared cops – the worse kind!!
You and so many others to include LEOs continue to miss the most important point of all. Not everyone stopped by the police have perfect hearing, speak English as their primary language, may have mental issues which still let them drive, may be under medication or may be sick with a very nasty flue/cold which can inhibit their actions, etc.
Sad to say police appear to only be trained to all yell different commands at the top of their voice. Person fails to comply, instantly they blow them away and cover it up by telling their standard lie, “I feared for my life.” Uhhhh hello. Fearing for your life is part of the job. Can’t handle it, do something else.
So, the DA says they need “to pray for wisdom and guidance.” No, these yahoos need to work on hiring and training educated, competent police officers. If they’re not sissypants, then so much the better.
Telling people to “pray” is totally inappropriate
When the totally clueless, unprofessional, rookie DA stated, “pray for wisdom and guidance” he is a perfect living example, proof religion is a crutch for those who are very weak of mind.
People in Tulsa are praying while people in NC are tearing the place apart! We don’t need praying or religion. People should wise up and start rioting in the Oklahoma streets!
At least she gets a day in court for killing someone. Terrance didn’t get a day in court for being a “big bad dude”.
They already labeled the guy huh? Isn’t that a generalization? Isn’t that discrimination? Maybe they’re not racist cops but scared cops are worse!!!
Tulsa PD Chief is the “Weak Link” in this case. Chief Doofus failed to provide the professional leadership his officer’s needed so badly.
Officer in the chopper is unprofessional, ranting like a street punk.
Officer on the ground tells lies about driver’s window being down when Tulsa PD Chopper video shows it up. http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/09/21/world/lawyer-white-tulsa-policewoman-killed-black-motorist-says-ignored-cops-commands/
Rot starts at the top. Tulsa PD has no business doing this investigation, lacks credibility and professionalism. Let the Feds do it.
what a nice smile! 🙂 publish the mugshot instead
the charge should have been murder in the first degree; she is nothing more than a bigot and totally incompetent.
So, in your mind, the officer must have tampered with Mr. Crutcher’s car at his home, followed him until it broke down and then shot him dead under some made up pretext?
What is rather odd is that she fired ONE shot and killed him. In many police shootings, the officers shoot way too many times.