This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/02/us/dallas-police-teen-shooting-jordan-edwards.html
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 5 | Version 6 |
|---|---|
| Police Officer Who Fatally Shot 15-Year-Old Texas Boy Is Fired | Police Officer Who Fatally Shot 15-Year-Old Texas Boy Is Fired |
| (about 11 hours later) | |
| BALCH SPRINGS, Tex. — It happened again, this time on a residential street in this working-class Dallas suburb. A police officer shot and killed a black teenager on Saturday night under questionable circumstances, thrusting him, his department and his city onto the national stage. | BALCH SPRINGS, Tex. — It happened again, this time on a residential street in this working-class Dallas suburb. A police officer shot and killed a black teenager on Saturday night under questionable circumstances, thrusting him, his department and his city onto the national stage. |
| On Tuesday, the chief of the Balch Springs Police Department announced that he had fired the officer who used a rifle to shoot into a moving vehicle full of teenagers and killed Jordan Edwards, 15, as he was seated in the front passenger seat. | On Tuesday, the chief of the Balch Springs Police Department announced that he had fired the officer who used a rifle to shoot into a moving vehicle full of teenagers and killed Jordan Edwards, 15, as he was seated in the front passenger seat. |
| The officer, Roy Oliver, joined the department in July 2011. The police chief, Jonathan Haber, declined to say what policies had been violated, citing Mr. Oliver’s right to appeal the termination. Chief Haber said his decision was based in part on the department’s internal affairs investigation, which has been completed, and the body-camera footage from the two officers at the scene, Mr. Oliver and an unnamed officer. | The officer, Roy Oliver, joined the department in July 2011. The police chief, Jonathan Haber, declined to say what policies had been violated, citing Mr. Oliver’s right to appeal the termination. Chief Haber said his decision was based in part on the department’s internal affairs investigation, which has been completed, and the body-camera footage from the two officers at the scene, Mr. Oliver and an unnamed officer. |
| “You have my assurances that my department will continue to be responsive, transparent and accountable,” Chief Haber said at a news conference early Tuesday evening. | “You have my assurances that my department will continue to be responsive, transparent and accountable,” Chief Haber said at a news conference early Tuesday evening. |
| The police chief declined to specify Mr. Oliver’s race. | The police chief declined to specify Mr. Oliver’s race. |
| Though the internal affairs inquiry has been completed, a criminal investigation into the shooting is being conducted by two Dallas County agencies, the sheriff’s department and the district attorney’s office. Chief Haber declined to describe Mr. Oliver’s disciplinary record as an officer. | Though the internal affairs inquiry has been completed, a criminal investigation into the shooting is being conducted by two Dallas County agencies, the sheriff’s department and the district attorney’s office. Chief Haber declined to describe Mr. Oliver’s disciplinary record as an officer. |
| Efforts to reach Mr. Oliver on Tuesday night were unsuccessful. A lawyer for the Edwards family posted on Twitter on Tuesday night that Mr. Oliver was appealing his termination. | |
| Responding to the officer’s firing, the Edwards family said in a statement on Tuesday that they were grateful for Chief Haber’s decision, but added that there was “a long road ahead” and called for Mr. Oliver to be arrested on a murder charge. The statement, released by S. Lee Merritt, a lawyer for the family, criticized the department’s treatment of Jordan’s brothers after the shooting. | Responding to the officer’s firing, the Edwards family said in a statement on Tuesday that they were grateful for Chief Haber’s decision, but added that there was “a long road ahead” and called for Mr. Oliver to be arrested on a murder charge. The statement, released by S. Lee Merritt, a lawyer for the family, criticized the department’s treatment of Jordan’s brothers after the shooting. |
| Jordan was in the car with four other teenagers: Jordan’s two brothers, Vidal and Kevon, and two friends. After the shooting, some or all of the teenagers who had been in the vehicle were “immediately treated as common criminals by other officers” and “manhandled, intimidated and arrested,” the statement read. It appeared that all those who had been arrested were released. | Jordan was in the car with four other teenagers: Jordan’s two brothers, Vidal and Kevon, and two friends. After the shooting, some or all of the teenagers who had been in the vehicle were “immediately treated as common criminals by other officers” and “manhandled, intimidated and arrested,” the statement read. It appeared that all those who had been arrested were released. |
| It was about 11 p.m. Saturday when Jordan left a house party after the police arrived, responding to reports of underage drinking. The police said officers heard multiple gunshots coming from outside the residence, causing a chaotic scene of teenagers fleeing. Jordan and the four others climbed into a car. According to the law firm representing the family, they were driving away from officers, with Jordan in the front passenger seat, as one officer, armed with an AR-15 rifle, opened fire and shot Mr. Edwards in the head, killing him. | It was about 11 p.m. Saturday when Jordan left a house party after the police arrived, responding to reports of underage drinking. The police said officers heard multiple gunshots coming from outside the residence, causing a chaotic scene of teenagers fleeing. Jordan and the four others climbed into a car. According to the law firm representing the family, they were driving away from officers, with Jordan in the front passenger seat, as one officer, armed with an AR-15 rifle, opened fire and shot Mr. Edwards in the head, killing him. |
| There were echoes of the other deadly police shootings around the country that have become all too familiar. | There were echoes of the other deadly police shootings around the country that have become all too familiar. |
| Tamir Rice in Cleveland was three years younger than Jordan. Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., was unarmed. Jordan was, too. Walter L. Scott in North Charleston, S.C., was fleeing from an officer. Jordan was fleeing, too, although not on foot like Mr. Scott but in a car. | Tamir Rice in Cleveland was three years younger than Jordan. Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., was unarmed. Jordan was, too. Walter L. Scott in North Charleston, S.C., was fleeing from an officer. Jordan was fleeing, too, although not on foot like Mr. Scott but in a car. |
| Laquan McDonald in Chicago was killed by an officer whose colleagues’ version of events was contradicted by dashcam video footage. In Jordan’s case, too, video footage contradicted the police. | Laquan McDonald in Chicago was killed by an officer whose colleagues’ version of events was contradicted by dashcam video footage. In Jordan’s case, too, video footage contradicted the police. |
| And yet, as with all of the fatal shootings that have stirred a national conversation about race and the police in recent years, the shooting death of Jordan Edwards was its own unique tragedy. | And yet, as with all of the fatal shootings that have stirred a national conversation about race and the police in recent years, the shooting death of Jordan Edwards was its own unique tragedy. |
| A high school freshman with a big smile and a big family, Jordan would stay late at football practice to spend extra time lifting weights. Jordan’s 16-year-old brother was sitting just a few feet away in the driver’s seat when Jordan was shot in the head. | A high school freshman with a big smile and a big family, Jordan would stay late at football practice to spend extra time lifting weights. Jordan’s 16-year-old brother was sitting just a few feet away in the driver’s seat when Jordan was shot in the head. |
| “Not only have Jordan’s brothers lost their best friend; they witnessed firsthand his violent, senseless, murder,” the Edwards family said in a statement on Tuesday. “Their young lives will forever be altered.” | “Not only have Jordan’s brothers lost their best friend; they witnessed firsthand his violent, senseless, murder,” the Edwards family said in a statement on Tuesday. “Their young lives will forever be altered.” |
| Outrage spread across Twitter after the shooting, but his grieving family asked people to refrain from protests and marches while they prepare for his funeral on Saturday. | Outrage spread across Twitter after the shooting, but his grieving family asked people to refrain from protests and marches while they prepare for his funeral on Saturday. |
| In Balch Springs on Tuesday afternoon, their wishes appeared to have been heard. One of the few signs that there had even been a shooting was not a protest banner or a placard but a makeshift memorial of handwritten letters and poems at Jordan’s football locker at Mesquite High School. | In Balch Springs on Tuesday afternoon, their wishes appeared to have been heard. One of the few signs that there had even been a shooting was not a protest banner or a placard but a makeshift memorial of handwritten letters and poems at Jordan’s football locker at Mesquite High School. |
| “He was a phenomenal young man,” Jeff Fleener, the head football coach, said. “He was an example of what we would like all our athletes to be. Great in the classroom, never got into trouble, was at school every single day and had a great attitude.” | “He was a phenomenal young man,” Jeff Fleener, the head football coach, said. “He was an example of what we would like all our athletes to be. Great in the classroom, never got into trouble, was at school every single day and had a great attitude.” |
| Balch Springs, about 15 miles east of downtown Dallas, is a majority-minority city that is 46 percent Latinos; 24 percent African-Americans and 28 percent whites. With a population of about 25,000, it had more violent crime than Texas cities of similar size in 2015, according to F.B.I. crime data. | Balch Springs, about 15 miles east of downtown Dallas, is a majority-minority city that is 46 percent Latinos; 24 percent African-Americans and 28 percent whites. With a population of about 25,000, it had more violent crime than Texas cities of similar size in 2015, according to F.B.I. crime data. |
| Ernest Walker, a Dallas-area civil rights activist, said that he did not blame the Police Department for Jordan’s death and that he considered Mr. Oliver’s race irrelevant. | Ernest Walker, a Dallas-area civil rights activist, said that he did not blame the Police Department for Jordan’s death and that he considered Mr. Oliver’s race irrelevant. |
| “I do believe there’s a propensity to overreact when a call comes in that there’s a party, and the party has a large number of African-Americans,” Mr. Walker said. Race, he added, “played some role, but I don’t think it played a role in why he was shooting.” | “I do believe there’s a propensity to overreact when a call comes in that there’s a party, and the party has a large number of African-Americans,” Mr. Walker said. Race, he added, “played some role, but I don’t think it played a role in why he was shooting.” |
| The Balch Springs police “went against the grain and fired this officer,” Mr. Walker said. “This department from Balch Springs has done everything they could do.” | The Balch Springs police “went against the grain and fired this officer,” Mr. Walker said. “This department from Balch Springs has done everything they could do.” |
| William J. Johnson, executive director of the National Association of Police Organizations, said the officer acted improperly if he fired into a vehicle that did not pose an imminent danger. | William J. Johnson, executive director of the National Association of Police Organizations, said the officer acted improperly if he fired into a vehicle that did not pose an imminent danger. |
| “If the vehicle was moving away from the officers and not an immediate threat to others, it would seem to be outside any policy in the United States,” he said. | “If the vehicle was moving away from the officers and not an immediate threat to others, it would seem to be outside any policy in the United States,” he said. |
| A number of police departments, including those in New York, Denver, Chicago and Los Angeles, explicitly prohibit officers from firing at moving vehicles except under a narrow set of circumstances, including if someone inside a car is firing at the officer. As part of those policies, if the only threat against an officer is an oncoming car or truck, the officer is not authorized to shoot. Instead, the police are trained to move out of the path of the vehicle and to ensure that others are safe. | A number of police departments, including those in New York, Denver, Chicago and Los Angeles, explicitly prohibit officers from firing at moving vehicles except under a narrow set of circumstances, including if someone inside a car is firing at the officer. As part of those policies, if the only threat against an officer is an oncoming car or truck, the officer is not authorized to shoot. Instead, the police are trained to move out of the path of the vehicle and to ensure that others are safe. |
| The Balch Springs Police Department initially said one of its officers fired on the vehicle after it reversed in an “aggressive manner” toward the officers, but on Monday, Chief Haber said body camera footage showed that the killing did not unfold the way the authorities originally claimed. The vehicle at first went in reverse, but then was moving forward — away from officers — when the shooting occurred. | The Balch Springs Police Department initially said one of its officers fired on the vehicle after it reversed in an “aggressive manner” toward the officers, but on Monday, Chief Haber said body camera footage showed that the killing did not unfold the way the authorities originally claimed. The vehicle at first went in reverse, but then was moving forward — away from officers — when the shooting occurred. |
| On Tuesday, Chief Haber said the department’s original statement was wrong because of “my inability to get all the facts like I should have.” He added, “In a rush to get the information out — to be transparent because it’s important for us to be transparent because we have to be responsible to our community partners — I missed a step.” | On Tuesday, Chief Haber said the department’s original statement was wrong because of “my inability to get all the facts like I should have.” He added, “In a rush to get the information out — to be transparent because it’s important for us to be transparent because we have to be responsible to our community partners — I missed a step.” |