By Isabella Volmert
Fort Worth police released some body camera footage from a police officer and a city fire department arson investigator who fatally shot two Black men early July 5 during an incident in which six people were injured.
At a press conference Tuesday, police shared portions of body camera footage and 911 calls related to the shooting. Police said the officer and arson investigator were part of a team handling fireworks calls the night of the Fourth of July. Gunshots from multiple firearms were heard in the recording as six people total, including the two fatally shot, were injured. Officials are still investigating who fired which shots.
Police Chief Neil Noakes said in a pre-recorded video that the two-person team responded to a block party about 9:20 p.m. July 4 near the corner of Ross Avenue and Northwest 32nd Street for a fireworks complaint. Noakes said no fireworks activity was observed at that time.
A few hours later about 12:25 a.m. July 5, the two were dispatched to a different part of the city and drove past the same block party, Noakes said. The two observed an injured man at the scene, walking away from another man holding a firearm. Police did not specify who the man with the firearm was.
The officers exited their vehicle and walked toward a house at the corner, Noakes said. While officers were stopping to investigate, 911 dispatchers received a call from a neighbor about a fight at the same corner, Noakes said.
In a recording of the call released by police, the 911 caller reported an “altercation” at a block party, where people could be heard screaming and crying. The caller also described it as a “big ol’ fight” before calling out, “Oh my god, they just, they just shot.”
Noakes said a gunshot was heard as the police officer approached, and a person later identified as 21-year-old Billy Smith was seen pointing a firearm at a man, who police say was injured, on the ground next to an SUV. Noakes said investigators later learned the man was shot, stabbed and beaten.
In body camera footage from the officer, a gunshot is heard as they near the car, and people start to scream. The officer raises his firearm and shoots at a person, whose back is to the officer, at least three times before yelling “Police! Get down!” The officer fires at least three more times.
At about the same time, the arson investigator observed a man later identified as 30-year-old Bronshay Minter with a pistol in his hand, according to the chief. Noakes said the pistol had a weapon light activated that was shining in the direction of the the officers and a person on the ground.
In the arson investigator’s body camera footage, after the officer yells “Police! Get down” and fires at least three shots, two other gunshots can be heard in the video. It was not immediately clear who fired the two gunshots.
Noakes said both the arson investigator and the police officer fired their weapons at Minter. Noakes said Minter was struck and fell to the ground, dropping the pistol. He then got up and ran around a corner of the house.
Body camera footage shows the officer shooting his firearm at least five more times before yelling “Sit down!” and firing once again.
Noakes said the officer recovered a semi-automatic pistol near Smith, who had fallen to the ground. Another pistol was recovered near where Minter fell, Noakes said. According to the Tarrant County medical examiner’s office, Smith died in a front yard at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds, and Minter died at a hospital of multiple gunshot wounds.
Police have not determined who fired the initial gunshot heard at the scene, nor whether it was fired by Smith or Minter. Noakes said two spent shell casings matching Minter’s pistol were found “close by.”
Two other gunshot victims were located, Noakes said. A fourth person was found with an apparent gunshot wound to the arm, but they left the scene. Police are currently looking for this individual. Police did not indicate whether the four gunshot victims were injured by officer gunfire.
The names of the officers have not been released. Noakes said the arson investigator is trained and licensed as a Texas peace officer. The department’s major case unit and internal affairs unit are investigating the shootings, as well as the Tarrant County district attorney’s office, police said.
Anyone with video footage or information about the shootings is asked to contact the major case unit at 817-392-4430.
‘They killed my little brother’
Minter went by the nickname Bam, according to a GoFundMe for his funeral expenses. The GoFundMe has raised more than $3,000 as of Tuesday.
According to reports by KXAS-TV (NBC5), family described Minter as a motorcycle stunt rider and the father of a 13-year-old son. The shootings happened at an annual Fourth of July block party held in the neighborhood, according to reports.
His family told KXAS-TV (NBC5) Minter is not the type of person to encourage a fight, but would rather try to break it up.
At a vigil Saturday for victims of recent gun violence, including the victims of the Como mass shooting, Nicole Johnson also disputed that the two men were fighting each other.
“This is crazy,” Johnson, who described herself Smith’s sister, said at the event. “They killed my little brother.”
She said police did not announce themselves or ask the two men to surrender their weapons. She also said there were children present at the party.
“They just came in our yard and just started blatantly shooting,” said an emotional Johnson.
She wants compensation for the family, victim assistance services for the family and accountability from police.
“This is Texas, so what if he had a gun,” she said.
Cynthia Smith, who described herself as Billy Smith’s mother, said her son was shot three times.
“They took my son away from me at an early age,” Cynthia Smith said at the vigil. “And no one seems to want to be accountable for it.
| This story, originally published in The Dallas Morning News, is reprinted as part of a collaborative partnership between The Dallas Morning News and Texas Metro News. The partnership seeks to boost coverage of Dallas’ communities of color, particularly in southern Dallas- at the bottom. |
