NEWS

Tulsa cop pleads not guilty in fatal shooting

Doug Stanglin
USA TODAY
Tulsa police officer Betty Shelby is led from the Tulsa County Sheriff's office into a courtroom in the Tulsa County courthouse, in Tulsa, Okla.,  Sept. 30, 2016.

Tulsa police officer Betty Shelby pleaded not guilty Friday to a charge of first-degree manslaughter in the killing of Terence Crutcher, an unarmed black man.

Looking anxious, Shelby 42, spoke only once with a "yes" in the brief arraignment to confirm her identity. Her attorney entered the not guilty plea.

The judge set a Nov. 29 date for a preliminary hearing where the court will decide whether there is enough evidence to proceed to trial.

Shelby, whose hair was pulled back tightly in a ponytail, wore a white blouse and dark pants as she was escorted from a holding area past news cameras to the courtroom.

Shelby was booked into jail on Sept. 23 and released on $50,000 bond.

Members of Crutcher's family and their attorneys were also present at the hearing.

"Today was just the first step toward the justice that we want for Terence and his family and we look forward to the next court hearing to continue to move forward in this process," attorney Damario Solomon-Simmons said.

This undated photo provided by the Tulsa Oklahoma Police Department shows officer Betty Shelby, who is charged with first-degree manslaughter in the shooting of an unarmed black man

Asked about his clients' reaction to the hearing, he said, "The family just buried their son only on Monday, so they are still in the process of grieving."

Shelby was charged with one count of manslaughter committed in the heat of passion for the Sept. 16 killing on a highway where Crutcher's vehicle had apparently stalled. Video of the shooting shows that Crutcher, 40, had at least one hand raised at the time he was shot.

The charge carries a penalty of four years to life in prison.

The shooting by the white officer comes amid several police-involved shootings of African-Americans. A fatal shooting in Charlotte, N.C.,  five days later sparked public street protests that led authorities to deploy the National Guard.

One key difference in the two cases is that Tulsa authorities quickly released the video of the Crutcher killing while Charlotte police initially balked at releasing their footage.

The casket of Terence Crutcher is wheeled out of the church following funeral services in Tulsa, Okla.,  on Sept. 24, 2016. Crutcher was fatally shot Sept. 16 by Officer Betty Shelby.

Prosecutors also moved quickly to complete their initial investigation in the Tulsa case, leading to the arrest of Shelby one week later. The Charlotte incident has been taken over by the State Bureau of Investigation and remains open.

Shelby's defense attorneys, in denying the charges against their client, has argued that Crutcher did not respond to her questions or commands. Instead, they argue, she felt her life was endangered when he allegedly moved his hand toward his pocket or to reach inside his car.

A probable cause affidavit for Shelby's arrest states that a fellow officer at the scene informed Shelby that he had a Taser and was ready to use it on Crutcher.

Attorney Scott Wood tells theTulsa World that she experienced "auditory exclusion" and did not hear the officer's remark and also did not realize other officers had arrived and were standing alongside her.

“He has his hands up and is facing the car and looks at Shelby, and his left hand goes through the car window, and that’s when she fired her shot,” Wood tells the newspaper.