A cop was
charged with voluntary manslaughter after shooting a man who ran towards police
for help after being involved in a car accident.
The victim,
Jonathan A. Ferrell, 24, played football for Florida A&M University in
2009-10, school officials said Sunday.
Ferrell was
seeking help at a nearby house early on Saturday after driving a vehicle that
crashed into trees in northeast Charlotte, according to Charlotte-Mecklenburg
police. A woman answered the door and, when she didn't recognise the man,
called the police emergency dispatcher.
Officers
responding to the breaking-and-entering call found Ferrell a short distance
from the home, police said. As they approached him, Ferrell ran toward the
officers and was hit with a Taser. Police said he continued to run toward them
when officer Randall Kerrick fired his gun, hitting Ferrell several times.
Ferrell died at the scene.
Police called
Ferrell and Kerrick's initial encounter ''appropriate and lawful.'' But in a
statement late Saturday, they said "the investigation showed that the
subsequent shooting of Mr. Ferrell was excessive'' and "Kerrick did not
have a lawful right to discharge his weapon during this encounter.''
Police said
Kerrick was charged with voluntary manslaughter, which under North Carolina law
involves killing without malice using "excessive force'' in exercising
"imperfect self-defence.''
Police were not
expected to further describe the incident Sunday, CMPD spokesman Officer Keith
Trietley said, and a report was not available on Sunday.
Kerrick, 27,
turned himself in for booking Saturday evening and was released on $50,000
bond, according to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office website. Kerrick
joined the police force in April 2011.
FAMU Interim
Athletic Director Michael Smith confirmed Sunday that Ferrell played the safety
position for the school's football team during the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
"Our
hearts and prayers go out to his family during their time of bereavement,'' Mr
Smith said in an emailed statement.
A public
records search indicated that Ferrell began living in Charlotte early this year
after moving from Tallahassee, Florida, home to FAMU.
Before Kerrick
was charged, police chief Rodney Monroe describe the accident in a news
conference.
He said the
wreck was so severe Ferrell would have had to climb out of the back window to
escape. Mr Monroe said he didn't know what caused the crash and didn't say
whether Ferrell suffered injuries, The Charlotte Observer reported.
Ferrell
apparently walked about 800 metres to the nearest house and was "banging
on the door viciously'' to attract attention, Mr Monroe said.
Thinking it was
her husband coming home late from work, the woman who lives there opened the
door. When she saw Ferrell, she shut it and called police about 2:30am, Mr
Monroe said.
Mr Monroe said
he didn't think the unarmed Ferrell made threats or tried to rob the woman.