It is said that the worst four words someone can hear is “Sixty Minutes is outside.” But in an unprecedented move, an officer awaiting trial made the questionable decision to appear on the show and tell her story.
Officer Betty Shelby, a ten year veteran of the Tulsa Police Department, shot and killed Terrance Crutcher in the center of a two lane road. The shooting was captured on two different police cameras and she was charged in an information (bypassing a Grand Jury) with Felony Manslaughter. Officer Shelby presented a cogent and logical thought process as to the rationale for her response to the actions of Mr. Crutcher. She presented a viable Graham Standard argument that her actions were those of a reasonable police officer.
The story, told by 60 minutes reported by Bill Whitaker was mostly a fair representation until his use of the word “executioner” in a question to Officer Shelby and the comparison to other controversial videos involving “unarmed” suspects. Even Mr. Whitaker admitted that the two videos failed to show demonstrative evidence of what actually happened. The dashboard camera was blocked by the two officers and the helicopter moved out of view when the fatal shot was fired.
As important as Officer Shelby’s statements were those made by the first back-up officer to the scene. He told Mr. Whitaker that he drew his Taser because Shelby had her gun out. He said that if she had drawn her Taser, he would have drawn his gun. More importantly, he told Mr. Whitaker that he was also in fear for his safety as the incident progressed stating, “the hairs on the back of my next stood up.”
The story specifically mentioned Trayvon Martin, whose case has no affiliation with law enforcement, but is mentioned in all shootings of black males by police.
In fact, Philando Castile (St. Paul, MN.), Keith Scott (Charlotte, N.C.) and Alton Sterling (Baton Rouge, La.) were all armed with a firearm on their person. Tamir Rice (Cleveland, O.) displayed a firearm, which later proved to be a toy, at the time he was shot.
Sixty Minutes Overtime presented a story at least as important as what aired in the show itself. It offered a witness who saw the behavior exhibited by Mr. Crutcher prior to the arrival of Officer Shelby. The witness, in a subsequent interview, stated that she had a fear that Mr. Crutcher was armed and by the erratic behavior he exhibited.
The behavior of the politicians in this case exhibits fear and ignorance. The Tulsa Mayor’s first thoughts after receiving the call from the Chief of Police was, “Oh boy, this is not good.”
The case will play out in a Courtroom in May. The decision of Shelby’s legal counsel to allow the interview will play out as well. It gives the prosecution the opportunity to parse her recorded statements to be used against her. This especially is true with her statement, “tried by twelve or carried by six.”
A tragedy does not create a criminal act. The question of whether or not the officer’s actions were necessary is subject to question. The question of whether or not the action was reasonable is, based on available evidence, positively.
Most of these cases are tragedies for all involved. The families of the person killed suffer a loss that is unimaginable. The family of the officer(s) involved also have to deal with a life-changing event.