Florida sheriff releases body camera video of airman shot dead in apartment, disputes family’s claim deputy went to wrong unit

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A Florida sheriff released body camera footage of a deputy who shot and killed a black airman in his home last week and disputed claims by the victim’s family that the deputy had the wrong apartment.

Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden showed the video during a news conference Thursday, shortly after an attorney for the 23-year-old airman’s family called for its public release, saying the victim’s girlfriend was FaceTiming with him and believes the agent was in the wrong unit. .

The victim was identified by his family as Roger Fortson, a senior active-duty airman, according to attorney Ben Crump, who held a news conference early Thursday. Crump and Fortson’s mother described him as a patriot who respected authority and hoped to buy his mother and younger siblings a house.

The sheriff, who met with Fortson’s family shortly before his news conference, said he asked the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Division to handle the criminal investigation, as required. While that investigation is ongoing, he said, “it has not been determined whether or not the deputy’s actions were justified.” The deputy has been placed on administrative leave.

“What we do know at this point is that the deputy announced himself, not once but twice,” Aden said. “Sir. Fortson’s comments indicate that he recognized that there were law enforcement officers at the door and came to the door with a firearm in his hand. The officer knocked on the correct door, did not cover the peephole or obscure the view of no way”.

But Fortson’s family reiterated their belief that authorities went through the wrong door.

“We remain convinced that police had the wrong apartment, as Roger was on the phone with his girlfriend for a considerable time prior to the shooting and no one else was in the apartment,” Fortson’s family said in a statement after the shooting. . publication of the footage.

Fortson’s girlfriend and her attorney also allowed the release of a portion of the FaceTime call that took place that night, according to the family statement.

What the body camera footage shows

Officers responded to an apartment last Friday after receiving a call about “a disturbance in progress,” Aden said in a previous statement.

“Upon hearing sounds of a disturbance, (a deputy) reacted in self-defense after encountering a 23-year-old man armed with a gun and after the deputy identified himself as a law enforcement officer,” the sheriff said.

“The deputy shot the man, who then succumbed to his injuries,” the sheriff said. The officer involved in the shooting has not been identified by authorities.

The body camera footage, dated May 3, begins at approximately 4:28 p.m. with an officer arriving at what appears to be an apartment complex.

A woman in the complex is heard telling the officer that there was a disturbance in apartment 1401 and that it was “getting out of hand.”

The same woman tells the officer that she previously walked by the apartment and heard screaming and “a slap,” but added that she wasn’t sure where it came from.

The agent takes the elevator to the fourth floor and knocks on a door three times. In the images you can see the apartment number “1401”. He announces himself twice and says, “Sheriff’s Office, open the door.” Nothing can be heard in the images from inside the apartment.

Within seconds of the apartment door opening, the officer says “take a step back” and is then seen firing his gun. Fortson is seen standing in the doorway with his hands down and what appears to be a firearm lowered in his right hand. He immediately falls to the ground as the officer fires. At least five shots are heard.

While Fortson is on the ground, the officer yells “drop the gun” twice. Fortson is heard saying: “he’s there” and then: “I don’t have him.”

The officer continues to point his gun at Fortson and tells him not to move, while Fortson remains on the ground. The officer continues to point his gun at Fortson while he calls EMS.

Officers reported to dispatch that Fortson had been shot six times with multiple gunshot wounds to the chest with an exit wound, according to police dispatch calls obtained by CNN affiliate WEAR.

Fortson’s family said after the video was released: “It is very disturbing that the officer gave no verbal commands and fired multiple times in a split second after the door opened, killing Roger.”

“Since the officer did not tell Roger to drop the gun before shooting, was the officer trained to give verbal warnings? Did the officer attempt to take life-saving measures? Was the officer trained to deal with law-abiding citizens who are registered gun owners? added his statement.

At their earlier news conference Thursday, Crump and Fortson’s mother described him as a responsible young man and a patriot who had long dreamed of serving in the United States Air Force.

They urged authorities to release more information about the shooting, saying the narrative presented so far suggested Fortson had done something wrong.

“To the sheriff’s department that took my gift… I need you to tell the truth about my son. I need you to fix his reputation,” Fortson’s mother said.

“I know my son didn’t do anything to them. If he scared them or if they were not trained properly, I apologize,” he said. “But please clear my baby’s reputation.”

Fortson entered active duty in November 2019 and was assigned to the 4th Special Operations Squadron, according to an Air Force statement, which said the shooting occurred at the airman’s off-base residence.

“The 1st Special Operations Wing’s priorities are to provide victim affairs service to the family, support the squadron during this tragic time, and ensure resources are available for all those affected,” the statement from Hurlburt Field said.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is following reports of the shooting “closely,” Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said Thursday.

Crump said the 23-year-old had been home for about 30 minutes playing video games before the shooting.

Fortson heard two separate knocks on the door and when no one could be seen through the peephole, he retrieved his gun, Crump said, quoting Fortson’s girlfriend. Crump said Fortson’s gun was legally owned.

The girlfriend said authorities went to the wrong apartment and that there was no disturbance there at the time, Crump said. Fortson was alone at the time, Crump said, citing Fortson’s girlfriend.

“(Fortson) was on the phone with his girlfriend in the apartment with just his dog,” Crump told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Thursday night. “They had the wrong apartment.”

“This young man was a model officer and a model citizen,” Crump said.

While details about the shooting remain unclear, the incident It echoes other shootings in recent years, in which law enforcement killed a Black man or woman in their home.

In 2019, a former Dallas police officer was sentenced to 10 years in prison after fatally shooting Botham Jean in his apartment the previous year. The officer, off-duty but still in uniform, lived on the floor below Jean’s and said she approached what she believed was her own apartment when she saw Jean inside her.

Atatiana Jefferson was killed that same year when a Fort Worth officer, responding to what police believed was a robbery, shot her through her bedroom window.

The officer testified at trial that Jefferson pointed a gun at him, but prosecutors argued there was no evidence he saw the gun before opening fire. The former Fort Worth officer was sentenced to nearly 12 years in prison in 2022.