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Witness Account Supports Beavercreek Police Reports In Store Shooting

balloon-juice.com

A 9-1-1 caller who reported a African-American man carrying a gun in a Beavercreek store has told state investigators he heard a white police officer repeatedly say "put it down" about two seconds before the man was shot and killed.  

An investigator's summary shows the caller, 24-year-old Ronald Ritchie, was interviewed the day after the Aug. 5 fatal shooting of John Crawford III at the Beavercreek store. Crawford had been talking on a cell phone and carrying an air rifle he picked up from a shelf as he walked through the store.  Ritchie's account of what happened provides some support for statements made by the two officers involved. They said Crawford appeared to be carrying an assault rifle, didn't respond to repeated commands to drop the weapon and turned toward them aggressively.  A Greene County grand jury last week declined to indict the officers.  The U.S. Justice Department has promised to launch an independent investigation.

 

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