An Oklahoma cop wearing a body cam recorded himself shooting and killing a man who was running from him after the suspect stopped to pick up an object he had dropped during the pursuit before continuing fleeing.
Muskogee police said the object was a loaded gun, but it’s difficult to make that out in the video.
Officer Chansey McMillin said he thought the suspect, Terence D. Walker, 21, was pointing the weapon at him, but that is difficult to tell, even after the Tulsa World slowed the video down, which you can see in the second video below.
The video shows McMillin initially approaching Walker, ordering his hands out of his pockets and beginning to frisk him.
At the time, McMillin is holding a cell phone in his hand.
But then as McMillin is frisking him, Walker begins running down the street with the cop giving chase.
Walker drops the object, bends down to pick it up, then begins running again as McMillin opens fire, shooting him in the back.
Another officer arrives on the scene, picks up an object by Walker’s body and tosses it aside. McMillin later states it’s a gun while another officer says it is loaded.
The incident took place Saturday, but the video was released today.
According to the Tulsa World:
Walker, Sgt. Mike Mahan said, had threatened his ex-girlfriend repeatedly throughout the day, telling her that he “had a bullet with his name on it.” The woman was inside the church when Walker arrived, and police arrived shortly thereafter.
“When officers got there, they asked to talk to (Walker,)” Mahan said. “A (female) witness said that he had tried to hand her a gun, but she wouldn’t take it. When officers began to pat (Walker) down, they felt the gun, and he started to run away.”
It was only five months ago that the Muskogee City Council approved $278,030 for 70 body cameras.
Muskogee police officers will soon utilize body-worn cameras, which police say will benefit the department and the public.
The cameras will provide the department with “an independent witness on everything an officer is out on,” said Deputy Police Chief Chad Farmer. “Hopefully it will reduce complaints on officers and give the police department the transparency it needs.”
Adding body-worn cameras to the officers’ uniforms was approved during the most recent Muskogee City Council meeting. Cost for the cameras is $278,030, which will provide 70 cameras — for all officers in patrol and investigations, plus a few additional cameras for replacements, Farmer said.
It isn’t exactly clear when they actually made the purchase and started using them.