Autopsy says White Tennessee Cop Shot Daniel Hambrick 3 Times from Behind. Charged with Murder for Executing Fleeing Black Man who was 40 Feet Away from Him
/From [HERE] An autopsy report says a black man killed by a white Tennessee police officer died from three gunshot wounds that hit him from behind.
The Tennessean cited the report that calls 25-year-old Daniel Hambrick's death a homicide and says he was hit twice in the back and once in the back of the head.
Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk secured a warrant last month charging officer Andrew Delke with criminal homicide in the death.
Authorities say it began with a traffic stop and that Hambrick had a gun.
Surveillance video released by the district attorney's office showed Hambrick sprinting away from Delke, who at first chased after him but then stopped and started shooting. Hambrick was not facing Delke when the officer opened fire. He shot him in the back. Hambrick, who appears to be about 40 feet away from Delke, falls to the ground after he was shot.
After Hambrick was shot, he was handcuffed "and left there like a dog," said Joy Kimbrough, an attorney representing the Hambrick family, in August.
As Hambrick lay on the ground, Delke can be seen walking away with his gun drawn. He appears to approach Hambrick later after another officer arrives.
"He shoots him repeatedly from behind," said Kimbrough, going over the new video. "The police officer fired four times, three of those bullets ripped Daniel apart. He fell to the ground, where he was cuffed and left, left there like a dog. Worse than a dog.
"I'm a criminal defense attorney. If there is ever a case of premeditated first-degree murder, this is it."
Delke had no body camera or dashboard camera to capture the shooting.
The police department accused Hambrick of being armed, tweeting a photo of the gun he was allegedly carrying on the day he was killed.
The affidavit, filed by an investigator with the district attorney’s office, said Officer Delke, 25, had unsuccessfully tried to stop a white Chevrolet Impala earlier in the day, and later pulled into a parking lot near another white vehicle, which he mistook for the Impala. Several people were in the area, the affidavit said, and when the officer arrived, Mr. Hambrick ran, and Officer Delke chased him, even though he did not know if the man was connected to either vehicle. [As it pertains to white citizen subjects, the Supreme Court has held that without more, flight or running from the presence of cops is not a basis for arrest and does not establish probable cause. [MORE]]
According to the TBI, [prior to the release of the video] Hambrick appears to have a dark object in his hand. A handgun was found nearby after the shooting, according to the police department, which tweeted a photo of the weapon as they announced news of the shooting.
However, Kimbrough said there was no traffic stop that occurred. Police did not pull over any car that he was driving in. She stated that when the cop arrived Hambrick was not inside the car. She stated there was no legal basis to arrest at him when the cop encountered him. He was outside the car and he ran at the sight of the police. However, flight or running from the presence of cops is not a basis for arrest and does not establish probable cause. [MORE]
Delke, has been “decommissioned,” meaning he currently has no active law enforcement duties but is still a police officer and is still drawing his salary. He said Officer Delke would eventually plead not guilty. His next court date, a preliminary hearing, is scheduled for Oct. 30.
Delke's attorney has said he plans to vigorously defend his client, who he says was following the law and his training.