Former Florida deputy charged in killing of Black man

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Prosecutors claimed that a former Florida sheriff’s deputy was charged with manslaughter on Friday in connection with the shooting death of a Black man who answered his apartment door after someone knocked.n State prosecutor Greg Marcille confirmed over the phone that former deputy Eddie Duran, who was previously fired by the Okaloosa County sheriff, was accused in the May 3 death of Air Force airman Roger Fortson, 23, in Fort Walton Beach. On Friday, the authorities issued an arrest warrant for him.

Duran’s unexpected knock on Fortson’s apartment door was captured on body camera footage that he took while responding to a report of domestic abuse. More forceful knocks were made by the deputy, who then twice declared that he was a member of the sheriff’s office. It was unclear whether Duran had legal representation and that he was unable for comment right away. If found guilty, Duran could spend up to 30 years in prison.

In a written statement, renowned civil rights lawyer Ben Crump, who is defending Fortson’s family, said that this was a positive start toward justice. “Our fight is far from over, and nothing can ever bring Roger back, but we are hopeful that this arrest and these charges will result in real justice for the Fortson family,” Crump remarked. According to Fortson’s relatives, the sheriff’s deputy accidentally targeted his apartment. They have made note of the fact that he was speaking with his girlfriend over the phone prior to the shooting and that the apartment was empty of other people.

The Okaloosa County sheriff’s department conducted an inquiry and discovered that a resident of the apartment building had contacted a non-emergency sheriff’s department phone line to report hearing an argument between a couple in Fortson’s apartment. According to Crump, the family’s lawyer, Fortson heard a knock on his door while he was having a Facetime conversation with his girlfriend. According to Crump, he inquired, “Who is it?” and received no answer. He then related the girlfriend’s story. Then, according to Crump, Fortson went back through his living room and toward the entrance, retrieving a rifle that he was legally the owner of.

The murder was similar to an unexpected police raid that occurred in Louisville, Kentucky, in March 2020 when police broke into the apartment of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman who was an emergency room attendant. The murder brought back memories of an unexpected police raid in Louisville, Kentucky, in March 2020, when officers killed Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black emergency medical technician, by breaking into her apartment. Because they believed the apartment to be the residence of a suspect, police got a “no knock” warrant to search it.

A federal judge decided to drop a portion of the most serious accusation against the two former police officers accused of killing Taylor on Friday. Taylor’s passing and the subsequent murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police, which occurred a few weeks later, sparked a global outcry in the summer of 2020 against racism in law enforcement.

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