Police Kill Wheelchair-Bound Man In Delaware; Federal Investigation Requested

A police killing of a man in a wheelchair captured on video has once again put a spotlight on police conduct at a time when police shootings — especially those seen in viral videos — are under increased national scrutiny.

Local politicians in Wilmington, Delaware, where the shooting took place, have requested a federal investigation. Tensions have risen over whether officers used excessive force on a wheelchair-bound man or were justified in protecting themselves from a potentially deadly encounter.

The video, taken across the street from the shooting, has been viewed by more than 300,000 people. It shows officers approaching a man in a wheelchair, Jeremy McDole, who they were told was armed and attempting suicide. The officers yell at him to put his hands up.

When he appears to reach for his waist, police shoot him. He died at the scene.

No gun can be seen on Jeremy McDole, and his mother continues to claim that her son was unarmed at the time of his death.

But in a 911 call released by police, a woman tells the dispatcher that a man in a wheelchair has just shot himself and still has his gun. Police say they found a .38-caliber handgun at the scene after McDole was killed last Wednesday.

The Wilmington Police Department did not immediately return a message left by Patch seeking an update on its investigation or confirmation of some widely reported details of the case.

“I’m sorry for the officers and family of Mr. McDole, as this encounter unfortunately ended with the loss of his life,” Wilmington Police chief Bobby L. Cummings told reporters last week. “I know that this incident could impact police and community relations, therefore, I will ensure a thorough and transparent investigation will be conducted.”

Beyond whether McDole was armed, concerns have been raised about the appropriateness of the police response.

“What those officers should have did was stand down and wait until the negotiating team got there,” Robert Bovell, a local bondsman who is close with the McDole family told the New York Times this week.

Jea P. Street, the local city councilman for that part of Wilmington, urged federal officials Monday to open an investigation, calling the video “more horrific than the footage from other jurisdictions where police have used deadly force and the Department of Justice has found it necessary to intervene and investigate,” the Times reported.

Richard Smith, The Delaware NAACP chapter president, also called for an independent investigation, saying it would help ease tensions between police and residents, according to the Times. He said in one incident, objects were thrown at officers responding to a separate shooting.

Further complicating things, Phyllis McDole, the victim’s mother, was arrested Monday for assault and threatening the woman she believed made the 911 call that brought officers to the scene.

Police said she and five other people went to the woman’s house Friday evening, and the mom punched her, saying, “B----, you got my son killed. You are the one that called the cops. You got my son shot, and you gonna die like my son died,” according to delawareonline.

The next day, police said, she came back to the house and said, “We gonna come back tonight and kill you,” delawareonline reported.

The woman she was threatening was not the 911 caller, and Phyllis McDole turned herself in to authorities.

She has previously been convicted five times of varying degrees of assault, according to delawareonline.

Opinions were also split on the Wilmington Police Department’s Facebook page, where residents expressed both outrage and support for the officers.

“Not a proud moment for our city. 4 armed officers against a man in a wheelchair. Its no surprise the officers ‘won,’” (sic) one woman wrote Tuesday.

“For all the know-it-alls out there in FB land, he had a gun on him! Listen to the 911 call! They were doing their job!” another woman said Sunday.

Here’s what isn’t being disputed.

Wilmington Police got a 911 call that a man in a wheelchair was trying to kill himself:

“We need police, an ambulance, a man just shot himself in the AutoZone parking lot,” the caller frantically tells the dispatcher. “He still has a gun, and he’s moving a little bit. He’s on the ground, and he’s moving around. And he has a weapon in his hand.”

A video posted to YouTube shot from across the street, shows McDole sitting in a wheelchair.

• You can watch the video here (WARNING: graphic, disturbing content)

An officer approaches him from behind a car with a gun mounted on his shoulder saying, “show me your hands.” A gunshot is heard, and the officer says, “drop your weapon.”

The video zooms in on McDole, and about 30 seconds later, two more officers appear holding pistols, yelling, “hands up.” A person behind the camera says, “he’s bleeding.”

A few seconds later, McDole appears to try to readjust himself in his wheelchair, pushing himself up with his hands. He then places a hand on his knee, puts both hands in his lap and appears to reach for his waistband.

No weapon is visible on or near him. The police open fire, and McDole dies instantly.

Police have insisted McDole was armed, but his mom insists otherwise.

“When Mr. McDole began to remove the weapon from his waist, the officers engaged him, and as a result of the injuries Mr. McDole sustained, he lost his life,” Cummings said at the press conference.

McDole’s mother, sitting in the back of the conference, interrupted, claiming, “This was unjust. He was paralyzed from the waist down. There’s video showing he didn’t pull a weapon. He had his hands in his lap when they opened fire on him five more times.”

Four officers were put on administrative duty, according to delawareonline.

Image via YouTube