Cases In Which Police Officers Were Charged In Shootings
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — A white former police officer has been convicted of murder in Texas for fatally shooting a black, unarmed teenager while on duty. The 2017 shooting launched the Dallas suburb of Balch Springs into a national conversation on issues of law enforcement and race.
Here are details about that case and others in recent years in which charges were filed in police shootings of black people:
— Dallas: Roy Oliver was convicted of murder Tuesday in the 2017 death of 15-year-old Jordan Edwards. Oliver, a Balch Springs police officer at the time, fired into a car packed with black teenagers who were leaving a house party in the Dallas suburb. The gunfire killed Edwards. Oliver said he thought his partner was in danger as the car drove by. But his partner told jurors he didn't fear for his life.
— Dallas: Last May, now former Dallas police officer Amy Wilburn was allowed to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of reckless discharge of a weapon. She was given probation for shooting an unarmed teenager who had his hands up at the time.
— Fort Worth: Former Fort Worth police officer Courtney Johnson will not be re-tried for a 2015 shooting. Johnson said he accidentally discharged his gun and shot Craigory Adams who he thought was holding a knife -- it was actually a barbecue fork. Johnson's 2017 aggravated assault trial ended in a mistrial.
— Garland: Former Garland police officer Patrick Tuter's manslaughter trial two years ago also ended with a deadlocked jury. It was in August of 2012 when after a chase Tuter fired 41 shots at Michael Allen, killing him. Tuter's actions were described as reckless and he was fired from the department, but he later pled guilty to a lesser charge and was given probation.
— East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Officer Michael Rosfeld was charged in the June 19 shooting death of 17-year-old Antwon Rose Jr. after the teen fled from a traffic stop. He is scheduled to be in court for a pretrial hearing Sept. 11.
— Chicago: Jason Van Dyke is charged with first-degree murder in the 2014 fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald. The white officer shot the black teenager 16 times. His trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 5. The shooting made international headlines when a judge forced the city to release a dashcam video of the shooting. The video sparked massive protests, cost the Chicago police superintendent his job, and promoted federal and local investigations.
— North Charleston, South Carolina: After killing 50-year-old Walter Scott in 2015, Officer Michael Slager pleaded guilty to federal civil rights charges. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison in December 2017. He later appealed.
— Chicago: Officer Marco Proano was sentenced to five years in prison for using excessive force after shooting at a stolen car in 2013, injuring two black teenagers.
— Cincinnati: University of Cincinnati police officer Raymond Tensing was tried twice for murder after killing Samuel DuBose, whom he pulled over for driving without a front license plate in 2015. The jury was hung both times, and the charges were dismissed. Tensing received $350,000 from the University of Cincinnati when he agreed to resign.
— Milwaukee: Officer Dominique Heaggan-Brown was acquitted in June 2017 of first-degree reckless homicide after shooting 23-year-old Sylville Smith during a foot chase in August 2016.
— Falcon Heights, Minnesota: Officer Jeronimo Yanez was charged with second-degree manslaughter and other counts after shooting 32-year-old Philando Castile in 2016. He was acquitted on all charges in June 2017.
— Tulsa, Oklahoma: Officer Betty Shelby was acquitted of manslaughter after shooting a 40-year-old unarmed black man, Terence Crutcher, in September 2016. A neighboring sheriff's office then announced Shelby, who resigned from the Tulsa Police Department, would join the squad.
— Miami: Prosecutors charged Officer Jonathan Aledda with four felonies and misdemeanors, including attempted manslaughter , after he shot unarmed behavioral therapist Charles Kinsey in July 2016. Kinsey was supervising a patient with autism who was holding a silver toy truck, which a bystander mistook for a gun.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
