A Tucson police officer was fired after fatally shooting a shoplifting suspect in a wheelchair nine times.
Authorities announced at a news conference, Officer Ryan Remington was being terminated for excessive use of force, ABC News.
Richard Lee Richards, 61, died at the scene. The shooting was recorded on former officer Remington’s body camera.
Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus said he was “deeply disturbed and troubled” by the former officer’s actions and that the case is still under review by the Pima County Attorney’s Office.
“His use of deadly force in this incident is a clear violation of department policy and directly contradicts multiple aspects of our use of force and training,” Magnus said.
Tucson Mayor Regina Romero also released a statement, saying Remington’s actions were “unconscionable and indefensible,” and the County Attorney’s Office has her full support during its investigation.
Tucson attorney Mike Storie, will represent Remington and said his client “had no non-lethal options.”
“He did have a taser, but in his mind, he couldn’t use it because he didn’t feel he had the proper spread to deploy it, with the wheelchair between him and Richards,” Storie said.
Magnus said Remington, a four-year veteran, was on a “special duty assignment, basically a security detail” at the Walmart located in Midvale Park Shopping Center.
A loss prevention employee at Walmart informed Remington that a man in a motorized wheelchair allegedly stole a toolbox, leading Remington and the store employee to follow the man outside.
When asked for a receipt, Richards reportedly said, “Here’s my receipt,” pulled out a knife, and proceeded to go towards a nearby home improvement store.
Remington allegedly ordered him to drop the knife and not to enter the store, but the suspect ignored him. That is when he was fatally shot and fell out of his wheelchair.
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