US Police Officer Betty Shelby charged with first-degree manslaughter in death of Terence Crutcher

Police Officer Betty Shelby will face first-degree manslaughter charges in the shooting death of 40-year-old Terence Crutcher, reports The Associated Press. Shelby has been on paid leave since the shooting on Sept. 16. Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler announced during a press conference Thursday that Shelby would face the charges after shooting and killing Crutcher on a highway in Tulsa; Crutcher was unarmed. Police claimed he was not following orders, and that Shelby fired a single shot after seeing him reach into his vehicle. Evidently Kunzweiler disagreed, and opted to file charges against Shelby.

Crutcher’s death has become yet another flash-point in the civil rights movement in America. Organizations such as Black Lives Matter have pointed to the shooting as a quintessential example of a lack of accountability amongst police officers in America, especially as it relates to black and brown people. Police officers have claimed that Crutcher was high on PCP, that he reached into his car window, and that he was generally non-compliant with officer commands. Several of these claims have been disputed by surveillance videos and by Crutcher’s family.

While all the details of the events on Sept. 16 remain unclear, they are likely to be rehashed repeatedly during the ensuing trial. The FBI and the Department of Justice are also reviewing the case for potential civil rights charges. You can watch the video above to see all the comments from Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler about the charges and the case.

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin released a statement about the charges, which you can read below.

I pray this decision provides some peace to the Crutcher family and the people of Tulsa, but we must remain patient as the case works its way through the justice system, where a jury likely will be asked to decide whether officer Betty Shelby is guilty of the crime. And we must remember that in our justice system, officer Shelby is innocent until proven guilty.

No matter how you feel about the prosecutors’ decision in this case, I hope Oklahomans will respect the views of your friends and neighbors because we still have to live peacefully together as we try to make sense of the circumstances that led to Mr. Crutcher’s death.

I want to compliment Tulsa Mayor Dewey Bartlett, Tulsa Police Chief Chuck Jordan and Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler as well as the citizens of Tulsa for keeping peace and order during this difficult time. I continue to ask that all of us keep the Crutcher and Shelby families in our prayers.

The Crutcher family held a press conference after the manslaughter charge was announced where Crutcher’s twin sister Tiffany and the family’s attorneys reacted to the news. Attorney Damario Simmons said that although the family was “happy” about the charges that alone would not suffice. Simmons added that the family was looking for a “vigorous prosecution and a conviction.”

Tiffany, who called the charges a “small victory” said, “Our goal now, as a family, is to ensure this never happens to another citizen. We will stay vigilant as this process moves forward and join the other peacefully in demanding greater accountability and transparency from law enforcement.”

“We’re going to break the chains of injustice. We’re going to break the chains of police brutality. The chain breaks right here in Tulsa, Oklahoma,” she said. “We got to get ready to fight this war. Today, we can change this nation. We can heal this nation.”

Credit: Complex