News Roundup

A fatal officer involved shooting in Roxboro last Friday has been in the news this week, setting off several days of demonstrations in the city and generating divided opinions about whether the use of deadly force was appropriate in the situation.  As ABC 11 reports, Roxboro police officers responded to a 911 call reporting that a man, later identified as David Brooks Jr., was walking down the street carrying a gun.  Dash camera footage shows that the officers encountered Brooks, who was carrying a shotgun, and ordered him to drop the weapon.  Soon thereafter, an officer shot Brooks once in the chest, possibly after Brooks made a movement with the shotgun.  The SBI now is investigating the incident.  Keep reading for more on this story and other news. Brooks.  In the days immediately following Brooks’s death, there were several days of demonstrations in Roxboro, with people calling for transparency in the investigation and criticizing the decision to use lethal force.  Dash camera footage of the shooting was released on Wednesday, and generated competing opinions (here and here) about whether the shooting was justified.  The footage does show that Brooks was armed when officers encountered him and did not immediately drop his gun, but it also shows that only about 15 seconds elapsed between the officers’ arrival on the scene and the firing of the fatal shot. Neville.  Earlier this month, the News Roundup noted the death of John Neville while he was detained at the Forsyth County Detention Center and associated [...]