Recording: Deputy gave man less than 2 seconds to drop gun
May 11, 2015, 12:54 PM
CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — A deputy responding to a 911 report of a home break-in gave the caller less than two seconds to drop a gun before shooting him in the neck, according to audio recorded by his dashcam.
Video from the deputy’s dashcam was provided to Charleston-area media outlets Monday. It doesn’t show the shooting but did record voices from the May 7 incident in the Hollywood community.
The sheriff’s deputy shouts, “Show me your hands,” then fires almost immediately. He hits Bryant Heyward, 26, then says, “Shots fired.”
Heyward is black and was critically injured in the shooting. Deputy Keith Tyner is white and has been suspended during an investigation by the State Law Enforcement Division.
Heyward had called 911 to report two men trying to break into his house. He said he was hiding in the laundry room. When deputies arrived, two men left on bicycles. Heyward came out carrying the gun.
Heyward’s grandmother lives next door. She had told Tyner that she heard gunshots and saw the gunmen go behind her grandson’s home.
The dashcam video also recorded Tyner’s brief discussion with the second deputy to arrive, Master Deputy Richard Powell. Neither officer was equipped with a body camera.
“They said they heard gunshots and saw them back this way,” Tyner says to Powell on the recording. “I’m not sure if they went in this house or not.”
On 911 tapes that were previously released, an officer is heard saying that the deputies did not initially know whether the person shot was one of the break-in suspects or a victim.
Police have arrested a man accused of trying to break into Heyward’s home and are looking for a second man.
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