Footage shows Porter initially responding to commands to get on the ground, then after demanding to know why he was being detained he rose to his feet.
Since Porter was wanted in connection with gunfire damage to a nearby hotel room he stayed at the night before, “Officer Corcoran had every reason to believe Mr. porter was armed,” said Englewood Sgt. Mike Lang at a press conference Monday.
The video shows Corcoran shoot Porter with a taser as he starts to rise. Porter falls down and says “OK, sorry,” as Corcoran fires the taser a second time. But Porter continues thrashing and reportedly starts pulling out the taser prongs.
Credit: DaytonDailyNews
A physical scuffle ensued, causing the lapel camera to thrash so much it was unclear what was happening.
Lang highlighted still frames allegedly showing Porter gaining control of the taser from Corcoran. Another shot showed the items that fell from Porter’s pocket as they wrestled: a handgun, a knife, a cell phone, loose ammunition and a cigarette lighter made to resemble a gun.
When he saw the gun on the ground, Corcoran realized “he was in a fight for his life,” Lang said, noting Corcoran was initially afraid to pull out his gun for fear Porter would wrestle it from him.
Lang said Corcoran fell to his stomach, then rose to his knees and spent a moment frantically searching for his holster, which had re-positioned during the fight. His fears that Porter had grabbed his own weapon off the ground were confirmed, Lang said, when he turned and saw the gun pointed inches from his head. Corcoran told investigators he heard Porter say “Now you don’t move.”
Body cam video captured none of this. You can hear Corcoran fire seven shots. Stills from the video capture some of the shots being fired. Porter’s hand holding the gun is out of frame.
Lang said it was evident that Porter picked up his weapon because it was found with Porter’s body, not several feet away where the pile of stuff that fell out of his pocket was.
When investigators examined Porter’s gun, Lang said, it showed one of Corcoran’s bullets had struck the weapon. The damage meant the round in the chamber could fire, but not the five rounds in the clip, he said.
After investigation by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office Bureau of Criminal Identification, Corcoran was cleared last week by a Montgomery County grand jury. He had already returned to duty.
Corcoran suffered minor injuries in the incident and told investigators he took every action possible to resolve the conflict peacefully before acting to protect his life.
UPDATE @ 1:35 p.m. (May 8)
Englewood police Monday afternoon are releasing body camera footage from an officer-involved fatal shooting of Shelly Porter III, 41, last February outside the former Englewood Inn.
The footage shows Porter fought with officer after being tased. The body camera footage shows a violent struggle.
Englewood police Sgt. Lang said: “Officer Corcoran had every reason to believe Mr. Porter was armed.”
EARLIER REPORT
An Englewood police officer who fatally shot a man in February was criminally cleared Friday by a Montgomery County grand jury.
Officer Timothy Corcoran, a 10-year veteran of that department and 17-year officer, shot and killed Shelly Porter III, 41 outside the former Englewood Inn. The men had talked to each other outside a different hotel earlier on Feb. 5.
“This has been a tragic event for everyone involved,” Englewood police Sgt. Mike Lang said. “We are appreciative of the diligent efforts of the Attorney General’s office and the agents of (the Bureau of Criminal Investigation). “Once we obtain (BCI’s) investigation and briefing Monday morning, we will release all investigative materials, including all body camera footage, to the public.”
RELATED: City refuses to release footage in fatal police shooting
Porter refused to comply with Corcoran’s commands, and the use of a Taser proved ineffective, according to a press release from the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office.
The release said “a physical fight ensued, Porter pointed his firearm at Corcoran, who then discharged his duty weapon in self‐defense.”
Porter was taken to Miami Valley Hospital, where he died.
RELATED: Officer had previous contact with suspect he fatally shot in Englewood
Corcoran saw Porter earlier that day in the parking lot of Hampton Inn at 180 Rockridge Road, according to police.
“The suspect was acting suspicious in that he was dressed inappropriately for the weather and was just king of hanging out in the parking lot of a hotel where he was not staying,” Lang said earlier this year.
Dispatchers later got a call from the assistant manager of the Motel 6 at 9325 North Main St.t to report a damaged a motel room. Officers found spent and unspent rounds in the motel room, but did not find a firearm.
RELATED: Suspect shot by police had ‘lengthy criminal history’
During a search for Porter, Corcoran found him in the parking lot of the closed motel on South Main Street. After the scuffle and shooting, Porter was taken to Miami Valley Hospital, where he died.
The prosecutor’s release said the grand jury heard testimony from both civilian and police witnesses.
“After consideration of all the testimony and evidence, the grand jury returned a no true bill,” finding that the officer’s actions “were legal under the circumstances.”
SOCIAL MEDIA: Follow this reporter on Facebook and Twitter
Corcoran also met Porter on Christmas Day 2015, when the officer was to escort Porter and another suspect to jail during a stolen vehicle investigation.
In that report, Corcoran wrote that Porter asked if he had a kit to test for pesticides. Porter said he thought he and the other suspect were being poisoned by pesticides by their gang stalkers.
“While en route to the jail, Porter began to complain of chest pain, heart palpitations and his fingers and toes being numb from the pesticide poisoning,” wrote Corcoran, who took Porter to a hospital.
About the Author