Police release footage of the moments before unarmed man was shot dead by Arizona police officer - but crucially omits the moment he begged for his life

Cop was fired and charged with murder


Goon Brailsford shot innocent man FIVE times

Police in Arizona have released an edited bodycam video of the night an unarmed father was shot dead by cops, although it crucially omits the moment he was killed while begging for his life.

The shaky footage, published publicly on Tuesday, fails to show the moment Daniel Shaver, 26, was shot dead by officer Philip Brailsford in Mesa on January 18.

Shaver, a married father-of-two from Texas, was in the city for business relating to his work in pest control.

Police were called to his hotel after reports that someone was pointing a gun from a window on a high-up floor in La Quinta Inn & Suites on East Superstition Springs Boulevard.

Though Shaver carries two pellet guns with him for work, he was unarmed at the time.

In the footage released by police, all that can be seen or heard in the video is the armed response team ordering guests on the fifth floor to get out their rooms as they surrounded Room 502, Shaver's room.

Investigators said in police records and in court that the video shows Shaver on the ground outside his room as he is ordered to crawl toward officers and tearfully pleads with them not to kill him.

Officers at the scene say they believed Shaver was reaching for a gun. No weapons were recovered from Shaver's body.

Investigators found two pellet rifles in the hotel room that were later determined to be part of his pest-control job.

Brailsford has pleaded not guilty to a charge of second-degree murder in Shaver's death.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sam Myers ordered portions of the video released after Shaver's widow and news organizations, including The Associated Press, called for it to be unsealed as a way to hold police accountable and serve the public interest.

However, the order bars the public release of the face-to-face encounter between officers and Shaver until Brailsford's case is resolved.

What is not shown is Shaver crawling towards police saying: 'Please don't shoot me', according to a witness who was also ordered to crawl. He reportedly kept trying to pull his shorts back up which were slipping down when he was crawling, according to PINAC.

Mesa Police Sergant Charles Langley then says: 'There is a very severe possibility that if you make another mistake you are going to get shot', according to a transcript of the footage that was read in court.

Langley then adds when Shaver tries to ask a question: 'Shut up. I'm not here to be tactful and diplomatic with you. You listen, you obey.'

Brailsford was later fired for violations of departmental policies.

The video shows Brailsford and other officers getting into a hotel elevator, listening to a sergeant voice a plan for getting Shaver and a woman out of the room, and waiting for several minutes as their calls for the pair to come out went unanswered.

'Listen to my instructions or it's going to become very uncomfortable for you,' one of the officers shouted.

Officers took cover in doorways as they waited for a response. Brailsford and another rifle-carrying officer at one point crouched down on their knees as they pointed their guns down the hallway.

When Shaver continues to try to pull his shorts back up, Brailsford then shot five times, killing him instantly.

The edited version of Brailsford's video ends when someone walks out of the room.

Video taken by another officer ends with an upset woman being taken from the hotel to wait on a bench.

Brailsford, prosecutors and Shaver's parents have argued that the video shouldn't be released to protect the officer's right to a fair trial.

Police shooting videos have become the focal point of protests around the country.

Chicago officials fought for more than a year to withhold a video showing a teenager getting shot by a police officer, and the court-ordered release of the footage prompted heated protests against Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

The Associated Press, Arizona Republic, 12 News (KPNX-TV), ABC15 (KNXV-TV), CBS 5 (KPHO-TV) and 3 TV (KTVK) petitioned the court to release the Arizona video.

Original report here


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