Unarmed man killed by Arizona cop cried, begged for life



An unarmed man who was shot and killed by an Arizona police officer in January cried, complied with police orders and begged for his life before the fatal firing, according to a newly released police report.

Mesa Police Officer Philip Brailsford has been charged with second-degree murder for the death of Daniel Shaver, a 26-year-old Texas man. Authorities have declined to release Brailsford’s body cam footage from the deadly encounter.

But a report released on Tuesday includes extensive description of the footage, detailing Shaver’s desperate final moments before Brailsford fired five shots at him with an AR-15 rifle.

Police confronted Shaver on January 8 after responding to reports of a man pointing a rifle out the fifth-floor window of a La Quinta hotel.

The night of his death, Shaver had invited a man and woman at the hotel to his room for drinks, according to the report.

After some shots of rum, the man asked Shaver about a case that appeared to hold a musical instrument. Shaver opened it to reveal a pellet gun and dead sparrow inside. Shaver told them he was on a business trip with Wal-Mart and “his job is to kill all of the birds that get inside the buildings,” according to the report.

Shaver then briefly pointed the pellet gun out the window.

When police found Shaver, they warned him that he “may not survive” if he did anything that could be considered a threat, the report says.

Brailsford’s body cam shows Shaver appeared to making small jerking motions while he had his hands behind his back., according to the report.

An officer yelled at him, “If you do that again, we are shooting you. Do you understand?”

“No, please don’t shoot me,” Shaver said.

The footage shows Shaver complying with all other orders, including a demand to crawl toward the officers, as he is “audibly heard sobbing.”

At one point, Shaver’s hand appeared to move toward his waist. An officer was heard yelling “Don’t” before Brailsford fired.

Shaver was not armed. His hand motion appeared to be him “attempting to pull his shorts up as they were falling off,” the report says.

Previous reports have indicated Shaver may have been drunk at the time of the shooting — despite telling officers he was not — and possibly did not understand police orders. Shaver’s autopsy report has not been released.

Brailsford was charged with second-degree murder and fired from the department. The new report reveals Brailsford had etched on his rifle: “You’re F---ed.”

Shaver’s widow and the mother of his two girls, Laney Sweet, posted a YouTube video this week saying prosecutors are considering a plea deal for the ex-cop. The Maricopa County Attorney has not commented on the case.

Original report here


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