I am usually the first person to give police officers the benefit of the doubt. Their job is often dangerous, thankless and lacking proper compensation. Their successes and sacrifices often do not make the news, while their failures are highly scrutinized. I always plead with people to preserve the innocent until proven guilty mentality with the police officers, as they do with any other person accused of criminal conduct.
Having said that, the evidence presented by the police department regarding the events of this past Friday night surrounding the death of Terence Crutcher in Tulsa Oklahoma is overwhelmingly damning. One simply cannot defend a team of officers that do not communicate as to who is the lead in approaching the perceived threat and who is in the role of a backup. Furthermore, the use of deadly force by a police officer should be the last resort and not a coercive instrument of compliance.
Terence Crutcher, aged 40, was returning from class at a Community College. He was attempting to educate himself and make his family proud, when his vehicle broke down. Shortly thereafter, Terence lost his life. At best, this was Police officer's incompetence and negligence. At worst, this was racial discrimination and a lack of value for a man's life.
Based on the information given by the Tulsa police department, officer Betty Shelby arrived at the scene first and found Terence looking intoxicated and unresponsive to her questions. After questioning Terence regarding his ownership of the vehicle and receiving no response, Terence raised his hands high in the air and proceeded to walk away from officer Shelby's vehicle toward his own. By this time, the police team responding to the dispatch call arrived at the scene and Terence continued to walk toward his SUV with his hands still in the air. When he arrived at his vehicle, Terence was seen to either lean against his vehicle or put his hands on the vehicle. Because of his unresponsive, and allegedly unpredictable behavior, officer Tyler Turnbough deployed his taser. At the same time, officer Betty Shelby discharged her firearm and fatally shot Terence.
While officer Tyler Turnbough correctly deployed his taser, in accordance with a non-compliant individual who is perceived as a threat, officer Betty Shelby acted irrationally by using deadly force. The released video and audio can confirm Terence's and the police movements as described by the Tulsa police department. The released video and audio cannot confirm whether or not Terence was intoxicated or unresponsive. What we know for certain is that he did not have a weapon on him or in his vehicle, he did not move toward officers in a threatening manner and he was killed in the process. The video also disproves Shelby's attorney defense that Terence was reaching into the vehicle, because the window on the driver's side of the vehicle is clearly seen as rolled up from the helicopter camera. Lastly, the audio from the helicopter contains a female voice saying 'that looks like a bad dude', which shows that Terence's appearance played into the assessment of at least one officer.
In the name of transparency, the Tulsa police department released video from the dash cam of the second police cruiser, as well as video and audio from the helicopter. I applaud the Tulsa police department for transparency in doing so. However, if you really want to uphold transparency, do so in prosecuting officer Betty Shelby to the fullest extent of the law. You have the responsibility to the people whom you serve - the people of Tulsa Oklahoma.
