North Carolina deputy placed on leave after fatally shooting man in street
A North Carolina deputy has been placed on administrative leave after a fatal shooting that sparked a local protest, authorities said.
The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office said in a news release Monday that Deputy Jeffrey Hash has been placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation. Hash has been with the sheriff's office since 2005 and is a lieutenant in the civil section.
The Fayetteville Police Department said a preliminary investigation determined Jason Walker, 37, "ran into traffic and jumped on a moving vehicle" Saturday. The off-duty deputy shot Walker and then called 911, police said. Walker was pronounced dead at the scene.
In a 911 call obtained by CBS affiliate WNCN on Tuesday, a man who identified himself as a lieutenant with the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office told the dispatcher that he had just shot a man who had jumped on his vehicle and broken his windshield. The caller said he had been driving with his wife and daughter in a red Ford F-150 when a man ran across the road, prompting him to stop so he wouldn't hit him. The caller then said the man jumped on his car while screaming, pulled his windshield wipers off, and started striking his windshield until it broke.
The recording also captured people on the scene yelling at the caller to ask where he shot the victim. The caller described the people on the scene as "hostile."
Hash's attorney told CBS News on Tuesday that his client is "devastated" by what occurred.
"They're devastated for the family of Jason Walker," the lawyer said in a statement. "They're devastated for their community."
The attorney also said that while he's "prohibited from discussing facts, statements, test results or anything of that nature," he said the matter "would involve defenses that could be found in the North Carolina General Statutes 14-51.2 which includes defenses of self, defense of others, defense of vehicles."
A group of protesters gathered outside police headquarters Sunday disputed the department's account.
Elizabeth Ricks, who said she witnessed the incident and applied pressure to Walker's wound, told the crowd that Walker was attempting to cross the street to get to his home when he was struck by the deputy's truck and then shot by Hash.
Ricks told The News & Observer of Raleigh she was on the scene and watched the entire situation unfold.
Fayetteville Police Chief Gina Hawkins said during a news conference Sunday that investigators examined the black box computer of the truck, which did not record any impact with any person or thing.
Hawkins also said a witness told police Walker was not hit by the pickup truck, WNCN reports. She also said it appears that a windshield wiper was torn off the truck and the metal part of it was used to damage the windshield of the deputy's truck.
Hawkins also said that investigators in her office have reviewed body-camera video of statements made by witnesses to officers at the scene. Hawkins also said that, so far, she knows of no video that shows the shooting.
Hawkins addressed protests held Sunday and said "peaceful protests and questions about what happened" are acceptable.
In bystander video of the shooting's aftermath, it appears the off-duty deputy had been driving a red truck that wasn't a law enforcement vehicle.
The FBI told CBS News they are aware of the shooting and are in regular contact with local and state authorities.
"If, in the course of the North Carolina SBI investigation, information comes to light of a potential federal violation, the FBI is prepared to investigate," the FBI said in a statement.
