A 43-year-old father was shot and killed by police in Las Vegas after he called 911 for help while fighting a burglar in his home.
Brandon Durham’s family, including his 15-year-old daughter who was hiding in a nearby room when her father was killed, have called for the officer to be fired.
Mr Durham’s young daughter said she was “disgusted” by the Las Vegas police as they treated her as a “suspect” and not a “victim”.
A lawyer for Alexander Bookman, the officer who shot Mr Durham, said he had pleaded not guilty.
Last week’s incident brought police shootings back to life, just days before the Justice Department opened an investigation into the death of Sonya Massey, who was shot and killed in July by a police officer at her home in Illinois.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said Mr. Bookman, 26, has been placed on paid leave while they investigate the Nov. 12 incident.
Mr. Durham called 911 to report that two people were shooting outside and were trying to break into his home, police said in a news release.
The police were responding to the report and found the windows of the cars broken.
They also saw damage to the house, and heard screaming from inside, police said, prompting Mr. Bookman to kick in the front door to gain entry.
Body camera footage released by police shows Mr Bookman walking through the house with his gun drawn, while screaming and exploding can be heard outside his eyes.
Turning the corner of the L-shaped hallway, the officer found a shirtless Mr. Durham holding a knife and a woman wearing a ski mask, later identified as 31-year-old Alejandra Boudreaux.
Mr Bookman shouts, “hey, drop the knife, drop the knife”, seconds before shooting Mr Durham and knocking him and Ms Boudreaux to the ground.
Mr Bookman then fired five more shots at Mr Durham and said “put your hands up”, body-worn camera footage released by police shows.
Mr Durham was pronounced dead at the scene. Ms. Boudreaux was arrested and charged with four counts, including home invasion with a deadly weapon.
“It upsets me the way the Metropolitan police told my father to sit down,” Mr Durham’s daughter told local news. “It disgusts me that the Metropolitan Police will allow me to remain fatherless for the rest of my life.”
The family’s lawyer requested an immediate arrest warrant for Mr Bookman.
“Unlike a civil case, where a person’s negligence is alleged, criminal cases require proof of the person’s criminal intent,” said David Roger, general counsel for the Las Vegas Police Protective Association, in a statement sent to CNN. “Although the death of Mr.
Citing a police report, local media said Mr Durham and Ms Boudreaux had previously been in a relationship.
Sheriff’s Assistant Dori Koren said police did not find a gun at the scene, despite multiple reports of shots fired.
Similar details between Mr Durham’s death and that of Sonya Massey, the Illinois woman who was shot and killed by police in her home after calling for help, have renewed calls for police reform.
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