Mecklenburg County District Attorney Spencer Merriweather announced in a 162-page report on Wednesday morning that Charlotte-Mecklenburg cop Wende Kerl won’t face criminal charges for the shooting death of Danquirs Franklin at a Burger King in March.
Officer Kerl shot Franklin, who appeared to be having a mental breakdown but was obviously attempting to drop his gun, multiple times, according to video footage and the 27-year-old’s autopsy report.
It happened on March 25, 2019 after Franklin showed up at the Burger King with a gun.
Franklin can be seen on surveillance video jumping the counter, assaulting people and pointing his gun.
After entering the restaurant, he began acting erratically overturning restaurant items.
Employees dialed 911 and officer Kerl was dispatched to the scene of the disturbance, according to Charlotte Alerts.
After encountering Danquirs, Kerl commanded him to drop his gun several times.
Danquirs doesn’t make any movements until police continue shouting at him.
“Let me see your hands!” Kerl can be heard screaming.
“Now!”
Kerl informs a fellow officer she’s crossing his path and moving into the potential line of fire of Franklin.
“Put it down. Put it down now!” the officers shout.
“He’s got a gun,” Kerl can be heard saying.
Officer repeatedly ask Franklin to drop the gun.
When he finally decides to obey the command to drop the gun, officer Kerl immediately unloads several rounds.
A few seconds before his death, Franklin looks at Kerl confused that he was shot while trying to put down the gun and utters his last words.
“You told me to put it on the ground….”
Franklin, who dropped the gun, appears confused for a few more seconds.
“Put it on the ground!” the officers shout several more times before firing several more rounds, ending Franklin’s life.
A general manager, who works in a ministry, attempted to de-escalate the situation with Franklin by praying with him.
“While in the parking lot, he observed (Franklin) kicking and banging on the door to the restaurant.”
Many in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg community have reportedly called for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Kerr Putney to step down in the wake of Franklin’s’ death.
Predictably, the chief praised the decision by the district attorney to forgo criminal charges against officer Kerl.
“The District Attorney reviewed all of the evidence, statements and information that was gathered during the case before making his determination. We respect his work and the effort he and his team committed to objectively reviewing the case,” Chief Putney said during a press conference.
“Mr. Franklin’s death is tragic, regardless of the circumstances. We ask the community to continue to keep his family and the family of Officer Kerl in their thoughts and prayers. All of their lives have been changed as a result of the shooting.”
One of the videos below shows community members asking Putney why he isn’t stepping down after he took questions in a public forum setting about Franklin’s shooting death.
The other shows Chief Putney praising the district attorney for not filing charges, which is typical police chief rhetoric that we see here at PINAC on a daily basis.
