Death by Cop- 2024
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Roger Fortson
Case # :1002
Gender : Male
Age : 21
Race : Black
Date : 05/03/2024
Location : Unknown
City : Okaloosa
County : Okaloosa
State : Florida
Agency : Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office
Officer(s) :Eddie Duran
Cause of death : Gunshot
Event : Killed by police during “man with a gun” call
Open records summary :
Okaloosa County Deputy Eddie Duran responded to an alleged disturbance near the Air Force’s Special Ops Command and shot and killed Senior Airman Roger Fortson. He had been on the phone with his girlfriend when police mistakenly arrived at his door. Hearing the noise, he carefully opened his door with a gun, as his military training led him to. He held a cell phone in the other hand as he was talking to his girlfriend while checking on the noise. The moment he opened the door, police shot and killed him for seeing him inside of his own apartment with a gun. Police had arrived at the wrong apartment by their own mistake. Fortson had not been the target of their visit and died when he opened his door.
Bodycam is linked below.
Family lawyer Ben Crump and the family have been vocal in August of 2024, stating that the officer must be charged and they questioned what is taking the investigation so long because the narrative and bodycam are quite clear-cut.
UPDATE: Officer Duran was charged with manslaughter on 08/23/2024.
Fortson had been a Special Missions Aviator on AC-130J Ghostrider gunships with the 4th Special Operations Squadron.
Source links :
https://taskandpurpose.com/news/gunship-airman-killed-by-deputy/
https://www.npr.org/2024/08/16/nx-s1-5078551/roger-fortson-family-demands-charges-in-his-death
Officer is charged:
https://www.mypanhandle.com/news/local-news/okaloosa-county/florida-deputy-who-killed-roger-fortson-charged-with-manslaughter/
