On Thursday a U.S. Air Force member was fatally shot by police who entered the wrong address, according to a lawyer representing the airman’s family.
Ben Crump, a civil rights attorney known for advocating on behalf of African American families affected by police violence, called for a thorough investigation into the fatal incident involving Roger Fortson on May 3.
Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office releases bodycam footage of one of its officers shooting and killing U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Roger Fortson. 🤔 LOOK LIKE IT COULD BE STAGE THO . THOUGHTS 💭 ? pic.twitter.com/2Ms4SO82mK
— BLACK FLAG 🏴 (@FlagBlack007) May 9, 2024
But Crump, at a press conference, said “it wasn’t Roger’s apartment that had a disturbance.” “He was in his apartment, his sanctuary, his castle, where he had every right to be, and they forcefully entered into his apartment,” Crump said, in an “excessive” use of force.
According to Crump, Senior Airman Roger Fortson, who was 23 years old, was engaged in a FaceTime call with his girlfriend, a nurse, at the time of the shooting.
She “heard everything,” starting with an “aggressive banging” at the door, he said. “She talked about how he said ‘Who is it’ and he heard no response,” Crump said, adding that Fortson looked through a peephole but didn’t see anyone.
“He went and retrieved his legally registered gun,” Crump said, adding that he was walking back when the door opened. “And then she said that she just heard shots,” he said. “He was shot six times.”
Crump demanded a transparent investigation to “do whatever justice will allow for a good man.” In his statement, Aden said a deputy had responded to “a call of a disturbance in progress where he encountered an armed man.”
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“The deputy shot the man, who later succumbed to his injuries,” Aden said, adding that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and state attorney’s office would conduct an investigation.
