Civil rights lawsuit filed in Florida deputy’s killing of US Airman Roger Fortson
By KATE PAYNE The family of a U S airman who was fatally shot by a Florida sheriff s deputy inside his own home in filed a federal civil rights lawsuit Tuesday over his killing The complaint filed in a Pensacola courthouse alleges that Deputy Eddie Duran used excessive and unconstitutional deadly force when he shot Senior Airman Roger Fortson just seconds after the Black -year-old opened his apartment door on May Duran identifies as Hispanic according to his voter registration Fortson s family is represented by Ben Crump a civil rights attorney who has been involved in a number of cases involving law enforcement killings of Black people including those of Michael Brown Breonna Taylor Tyre Nichols and George Floyd Duran has pleaded not guilty to a charge of manslaughter with a firearm The complaint also details alleged failures by the Okaloosa County Sheriff s Office in training and supervision and asserts that staff at the apartment complex where Fortson lived provided misleading information that led to the fatal law enforcement response FILE Friends and family of Roger Fortson watch as his casket leaves for the cemetery at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church on May in Stonecrest Ga AP Photo Brynn Anderson File Duran came to Fortson s door in Fort Walton Beach in response to a analysis of a physical fight inside an apartment A worker there identified Fortson s apartment as the location of a loud argument according to sheriff s investigators Fortson who was assigned to the th Special Operations Squadron at Hurlburt Field was alone at the time talking with his girlfriend on a FaceTime video call Duran s body camera video presented what happened next The deputy pounded at the door repeatedly and yelled Sheriff s office open the door Fortson opened the door with his legally purchased gun in his right hand pointed to the ground The deputy commented Step back then instantly began firing Fortson fell backward onto the floor Only then did the deputy yell Drop the gun Deputies had never been called to Fortson s apartment before records show but they had been called to a nearby unit times in the previous eight months including once for a domestic disturbance The fatal shooting renewed debate on police killings and race and occurred against a wider backdrop of increased attention by the military to racial issues in its ranks It is highly remarkable for Florida law enforcement officers to be charged for an on-duty killing Convictions in such cases are even rarer Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press Review for America Statehouse News Initiative Description for America is a nonprofit national function plan that places journalists in local newsrooms to overview on undercovered issues
