VIDEO: Police shoot, kill mentally ill man carrying screwdriver
DALLAS - As part of a wrongful death lawsuit, the family of Jason Harrison released a body camera video showing Dallas police shooting and killing the mentally ill man just outside his home in June 2014, reports CBS DFW.
Harrison's family says he needed mental health help when police came to his home. Police say Harrison had a screwdriver and lunged at officers.
The attorney for Jason Harrison's family said the video is an example what not to do when dealing with the mentally ill.
The family reportedly says that they told police Harrison was bipolar, and that instead of de-escalating the situation, they shot and killed him.
"For someone to go from zero to 100 the way these guys did it...I just don't believe that's the way it should be done in Dallas, Texas," said Harrison's brother, Sean Harrison.
The Dallas Morning News asked two experts on police tactics what they thought of the shooting, captured on video, and got two diametrically opposed views.
Keith Wenzel, a retired Dallas Police Department trainer, told the newspaper, "They did an absolutely perfect job." But Cecile Tebo, former commander of the New Orleans Police Department's Crisis Intervention Team - a group of police specially trained to interact with mentally ill citizens - said the situation "was handled very poorly."
The Dallas Police Department responded to the release of the video with this statement:
"The Dallas Police Department has completed its criminal investigation into the June 14, 2014 Officer Involved Shooting at 208 Glencairn. The investigation has been forwarded to the Dallas County District Attorney's Office for their actions."