White Tulsa Police Officer Acquitted in Shooting of Terence Crutcher | Sojourners

White Tulsa Police Officer Acquitted in Shooting of Terence Crutcher

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On May 17, white Tulsa, Okla., police Officer Betty Shelby was acquitted of manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Terence Crutcher, an unarmed black man, reports CNN.

On Sept. 16, 2016, Shelby shot and killed Crutcher after his SUV stalled on a street and police arrived to investigate. According to the Tulsa Police Department, Crutcher refused to put his hands up when asked to do so by officers, and he reached into his SUV.

However, the Tulsa Police Department’s account of what happened failed to match the accounts of community leaders who were shown footage of the shooting. Pastor Rodney Goss stated that Crutcher’s “hands were in the air.” Crutcher’s twin sister saw the footage and agreed. On Sept. 19, the Tulsa Police Department released dashcam and helicopter footage of the shooting.

“Let it be known that I believe in my heart that Betty Shelby got away with murder,” said Crutcher’s father, Joseph Crutcher.

“I have four grandchildren that are at home now, that have lost their daddy.”

Read more here.