The Charlotte-Mecklenburg police department has released the audio recording of Saturday morning’s 911 call that led to the fatal shooting of Jonathan Ferrell.
The bizarre series of events that sparked the infamous 911 call has caused a nationwide outrage. Ferrell was fatally shot 10 times by a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer. Around 2:30am early Saturday morning, police were summoned to, Bradfield Farms, an upscale residential community on the outskirts of Charlotte, NC. Bradfield Farms resident, Sarah McCartney, placed the call to police. The audio reveals the woman frantically screaming insisting that someone is trying to break into her home. At the time, Ferrell was knocking at her door repeatedly.
When three police officers arrived in response to the ‘breaking and entering’ call, they said that Ferrell ran in their direction. He was initially tasered by one officer, but when the effort waned, officer Randall Kent opened fire. Ferrell was pronounced dead at the scene. It was later discovered that he had been in an automobile accident, and had pried his way out of his car. He was only seeking help because he was injured as a result of the accident. While the officers claim Ferrell ‘charged’ them, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police department disagrees with the actions that were taken, admitting that the shooting had no probable cause. Kerrick turned himself in on Saturday shortly after the shooting. He was initially released on $50,000 bond. However, on Monday, the charges came, and all three officers were suspended on paid leave.
According to CNN, Monday afternoon in another news report, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police department announced that Ferrell’s autopsy was complete. The department released this statement: “The evidence revealed that Mr. Ferrell did advance on Officer Kerrick and the investigation showed that the subsequent shooting of Mr. Ferrell was excessive. Our investigation has shown that Officer Kerrick did not have a lawful right to discharge his weapon during this encounter.” The investigation specifically uncovered that Kent “fired his weapon 12 times and struck Mr. Ferrell 10 times, resulting in his death.” The police department has charged officer Randall Kerrick with voluntary manslaughter, stating that ‘he had no cause to shoot Ferrell.’ Police chief, Rodney Monroe, also stated that the nature of Ferrell’s initial car accident was ‘pretty serious.’
Kerrick appeared in court on Tuesday. University Herald reported that although he did not offer any comment following appearance, his defense attorney, Michael Greene, stated that Kerrick’s “actions were justified on the night in question.”
Jonathan Ferrell was a 24-year-old, former football player at FAMU. He was unarmed at the time of the shooting.
Image via WUSA9