The police shooting of a black Texas teenager leaving a house party Saturday did not meet the department’s standards, the police chief said Monday.
“We have a certain set of core values, and it did not meet our core values,” Balch Springs Police Chief Jonathan Haber told reporters.
A Balch Springs police officer fatally shot 15 year-old Jordan Edwards with a rifle, a move the police chief now questions, reports NBC News. Police originally said they answered a call late Saturday night about a “raucous house party.” While on the scene, they claimed to hear gunshots. Officers maintained they came across a car that was “aggressively” backing towards them. An officer fired at the car, killing Edwards in the front seat.
Haber now doubts the original police account after reviewing body camera footage, he said. Body camera footage shows the car actually driving away from the officers.
“I unintentionally, incorrect yesterday when I said the vehicle was backing down the road. In fact, according to the video that I viewed the vehicle was moving forward as the officer was approached,” Haber said.
He added he now questions whether the officer adhered to the department’s standards.
“I do have questions in relation to my observation on the video and what is consistent with the policies and core values of the Balch Springs Police Department,” he went on.
The officer in question has been placed on leave pending an investigation into the shooting. The department is not identifying him.
Lee Merritt, a lawyer for the family, said they want the officer responsible to be criminally charged.
“This has happened far too often,” Merritt said. “We are tired of making the same rhetorical demands, of having the same hashtags.”
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