TULSA – The defense team for the Tulsa police officer charged with first degree manslaughter is now seeking to have an additional item added to its list of potential evidence after receiving a tip from a caller.
The court documents filed on September 30 state that Betty Shelby’s attorneys received a phone call on September 28 claiming that a shots fired incident reported on September 15, the day before Terence Crutcher was shot, involved Crutcher.
According to the court documents, Shelby’s defense attorneys say a caller said a person they believed to be Crutcher was firing shots “on the northside” and that police were called to the “intersection of 15 and … “ but that the rest of the location was “inaudible.”
The documents state that after receiving the call, information was found that showed police were called out to the 1500th block of East 52 SN on September 15 to investigate reports of a person firing a gun on the street and found a GLOCK firearm. Shelby’s defense team claim that the gun procured during that incident is “not being held as evidence and [was] left for pickup by owner.”
Shelby’s attorneys are asking that the court obtain the alleged gun found after those reports, and preserve it. The documents also ask that the gun be tested for DNA or fingerprints and be used as evidence to be presented by the defense in Shelby’s case.
Damario Solomon Simmons, Attorney to the Crutcher family, released the following statement Tuesday.
“It is sad, but not surprising, that Officer Shelby’s counsel continues to promote irrelevant information in an attempt to distract from undisputed facts that Office Shelby shot and killed Terence Crutcher without provocation or justification.
The undisputed facts are as follows:
- Fact #1. Nothing that occurred on or before September 16, 2016, at 7:15 p.m. is relevant to the unjustified and unprovoked shooting and killing of Terence Crutcher.
- Fact #2. The video shows that Terence Crutcher was unarmed when he was shot and killed by Officer Shelby.
- Fact #3. Terence Crutcher did not have a weapon in the car when he was shot and killed by Officer Shelby.
- Fact #4. The video shows that Terence Crutcher had his hands up when he was shot and killed by Officer Shelby.
- Fact #5. The video shows that Terence Crutcher did not make any sudden movements towards the officers when he was shot and killed by Officer Shelby.
- Fact #6. Terence Crutcher was not a suspect for any crime when he was shot and killed by Officer Shelby.
- Fact #7. Terence Crutcher was not known to be breaking any laws when he was shot and killed by Officer Shelby.
- Fact #8. The video shows that Terence Crutcher was not being belligerent when he was shot and killed by Officer Shelby. Fact #9. The video shows that out of the four (4) officers on the scene, only Officer Shelby had her gun out.
- Fact #10. The video shows that out of the four (4) officers on the scene, only Officer Shelby shot Terence Crutcher.
In closing, we are optimistic that District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler will rely on the actual facts of this case to secure a guilty verdict and appropriate prison sentence for the tragic killing of Terence Crutcher.”
Tulsa Police Officer Betty Shelby is accused of first degree manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Terence Crutcher, who was unarmed at the time.
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