There have been many speculations and stories about high profile killings in places such as New York and the top story about the shooting in Ferguson. Now, it is happening in Dallas, Texas as well. Due to the regulations of a police department, one of the officers involved in the Dallas shooting had a camera attached to his body, catching the entire incident on tape.
A 38-year-old, African-American man, Jason Harrison, was shot and killed in his home after his mother had called asking someone to take him to a local hospital because he was in a mental crisis. Harrison was suffering from bipolar disorder as well as schizophrenia.
Although this incident happened last summer, the footage has just recently been released. The footage shows the two white officers demanding that Harrison drop the screwdriver he was twiddling with; within seconds, they fired several shots, killing Harrison.
In October, the family filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the officers as well as the city. After the case was forwarded to the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office from the Dallas Police Department; Morning News reports that an attorney for the officers said that they feared for their lives.
Source: Curtis Skinner, “Dallas Cops Shoot Mentally ill man who Refused to Stop Twiddling Screwdriver,” Raw Story (via Reuters), March 17, 2015, http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2015/03/watch-dallas-cops-shoot-mentally-ill-man-who-refused-to-stop-twiddling-screwdriver/.
Student Researcher: Arianna D’Aquila (Indian River State College)
Faculty Evaluator: Elliot D. Cohen (Indian River State College)