A police officer who fatally shot an
unarmed black motorist in Tulsa, Oklahoma, has been charged with
manslaughter, a prosecutor has said.
Officer Betty Shelby shot and killed Terence Crutcher last week while he was standing next to his broken-down car.
An arrest warrant was issued for Shelby
and arrangements have been made for her surrender, he said. It was not
clear when she would turn herself in.
The
criminal complaint against Shelby said her "fear resulted in her
unreasonable actions which led her to shooting" Crutcher. She is
accused of "unlawfully and unnecessarily" shooting Crutcher after he did
not comply with her "lawful orders."
Attorneys
for Crutcher's family said they were "happy charges have been brought"
against the officer and they will be seeking a "vigorous prosecution" of
this case that results in a conviction.
The attorneys also expressed gratitude to the Tulsa Police Department.
"Today,
we are thankful to TPD, we are thankful to (police) Chief (Chuck)
Jordan for providing information to the District Attorney's office, and
we are happy that charges were brought," attorney Damario
Solomon-Simmons said during a news conference.
"This is a small victory," Crutcher's twin sister Tiffany told reporters.
"The chain breaks here. We're going to break the chains of police brutality," she added. "We know the history."
The
possible penalty for conviction on first-degree manslaughter in
Oklahoma is four years to life, according to Susan Witt, the public
information officer for the district attorney's office.
Gov.
Mary Fallin issued a statement, saying she prays that the decision to
charge Shelby brings "some peace to the Crutcher family and the people
of Tulsa."
She urged people to
remain patient as the case goes forward. "And we must remember that in
our justice system, officer Shelby is innocent until proven guilty,"
Fallin said.
CNN reached out to Scott Wood, the attorney for Shelby, but has not received a response.
Earlier
this week, Wood said his client thought Crutcher was behaving strangely
and ignored her commands, and that she was afraid that he might be
reaching for a weapon.
Multiple police cameras, including ones mounted in squad cars and in a helicopter, captured the Crutcher shooting
on tape. In the video, Crutcher can be seen with his hands raised above
his head prior to his death. He walks away from Shelby towards his car.
None of the videos showed whether the vehicle window was open or closed.
There was no weapon found in the car.
Follow link bellow to watch video
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