A Florida sheriff's deputy, who fatally shot a Black US Air Force airman at his home, was fired from his job on Saturday. Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden fired Deputy Eddie Duran saying that his life was never in danger and he should not have fired his weapon.
Senior Airman Roger Fortson was shot by the officer on May 3 after responding to a domestic violence call and being directed to Fortson's apartment. The deputy had fired multiple times after Fortson, 23, opened the door. The body camera footage shows that Fortson was holding his legal gun, pointing at the ground, in his right hand.
An internal investigation was conducted over the incident which concluded that Fortson did not make any hostile, attacking movements, and therefore, the “former deputy's use of deadly force was not objectively reasonable”.
This tragic incident should have never occurred, Aden said in the statement. The objective facts do not support the use of deadly force as an appropriate response to Fortson's actions. He did not commit any crime. By all accounts, he was an exceptional airman and individual, added Aden.
Florida Department of Law Enforcement is still investigating the case.
According to the internal affairs report, Duran told investigators that when Fortson opened the door, he had seen aggression in the boy's eyes. He said he fired as he thought he was going to get shot.
It is him or me at this point and I need to, I need to act as opposed to react, he told investigators.
Attorney Ben Crump, representing Fortson's family, said Duran's firing is a step forward, but it is not full justice for Roger and his family.
The actions of this deputy were not just negligent, they were criminal, Crump said.
Duran is a law enforcement veteran. He began his career as a military police officer in the Army. In 2015, he was hired by an Oklahoma police department and later he joined the Okaloosa County sheriff's office in July 2019.
An apartment complex manager called the sheriff's office at 4:24 pm, telling the officials about frequent arguments coming from the apartment complex. Duran arrived three minutes after the call and met the manager in the parking lot. She had directed the officers to Fortson's fourth-floor apartment.
Reportedly, Fortson was on a video call with his girlfriend when the officers arrived at his door. Fortson's girlfriend told investigators that the airman asked who was there but did not get a response. She said Fortson told her that he was not going to answer the door as no one comes to his apartment. She said neither of them heard the deputy yell that he was with the sheriff's office.
After the third knock, she said Fortson told her, I'm gonna go grab my gun because I don't know who that is.
When Fortson opened the door holding his gun, Duran said Step back, and then immediately began firing. Fortson fell backwards onto the floor. Though he was rushed to the hospital, he could not be saved.
(With PTI inputs)