Louisiana Officer Arrested For Deadly Shooting Of Unarmed Black Man – Police (Watch Video)
An unarmed Black man who was attempting to flee from police earlier this month as they responded to a domestic disturbance call was fatally shot by a white Louisiana police officer, according to authorities. The officer was arrested on Thursday.
State troopers charged Shreveport Police Officer Alexander Tyler, 23, with negligent homicide in the death of Alonzo Bagley, 43, after evaluating the evidence and video from the officers’ body-worn cameras.
On Thursday, the Louisiana State Police released audio from the 911 call reporting the initial disturbance along with body camera footage of the tragic incident.
Around 10:50 p.m. on February 3 in Shreveport, a city in northwest Louisiana, police were called to the disturbance. Bagley’s wife made the 911 call, claiming that her husband was “heavy on something” and threatening her and their daughter.
When Tyler and a different officer, who was not identified, arrived at the apartment, Bagley opened the door while carrying a glass bottle containing a dark liquid. Bagley explained that he had to put his dog away before exiting the building by taking a balcony at the back of the flat. The police then started after him.
Officer Tyler saw Mr. Bagley as he rounded a corner of the structure and fired one round from his service pistol, striking Mr. Bagley in the chest, Col. Lamar Davis, the director of the Louisiana State Police, said at a press conference earlier this month.
Bagley can be heard crying, “Oh God, you shot me,” in the footage as he collapses to the ground.
The officers immediately rendered aid as one of the men — it is unclear who — said, “No. No. Sir. Sir. Hey. Hey. Hey. No. No.”
After the shooting, Tyler made “multiple statements claiming the suspect came toward him and he could not see his hands,” according to court documents by state police. Investigators did not find any weapons in Bagley’s possession.
Tyler, who has been with the police department since May 2021, is currently on paid administrative leave, Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith said Thursday. Smith said, to his knowledge, Tyler had been involved in one policy violation in which there was “violence to a suspect” but did not elaborate further.
It was not immediately clear whether Tyler had hired an attorney who could comment on his behalf, but as of Thursday afternoon he was released on a bond of $25,000. In Louisiana, a negligent homicide charge carries a prison sentence of up to five years upon conviction.
Family members of Bagley have filed a $10 million lawsuit against Tyler.
“The lethal force used against Mr. Bagley was unjustified, unreasonable, excessive, and in violation of Mr. Bagley’s rights under the United States Constitution and the laws of the State of Louisiana,” the lawsuit said, which was filed by Bagley’s wife, mother and stepdaughter.
The family has hired a Louisiana attorney Ronald Haley, who has represented other high-profile clients include the family of Ronald Greene, a Black motorist whose 2019 death in state police custody in north Louisiana prompted lawsuits and criminal charges against law enforcement officers.
During a Thursday afternoon press conference with some of Bagley’s relatives, Haley said the fact that Bagley fled from police should not equate to a “death sentence.”
“Flight does not mean shoot to kill,” Haley said. “Flight does not mean you are the judge, jury and executioner, and that’s what happened. That was what happened in this case … and it is an incident that we see far too often in the state. It’s an incident that we see far too often around this country.”
During the news conference, Xavier Sudds said he hopes his brother’s death “means something.” Louisiana has had multiple high-profile fatal officer-involved shootings — including the ones involving Greene and Alton Sterling, a Black man who was shot and killed by an officer outside a convenience store in Baton Rouge after being wrestled to the ground.
“I appreciate everybody’s condolences and prayers but none of that compares to the pain that I’m feeling, the pain that my mom is feeling. … That’s going to linger for a while, for a long time,” Sudds said.
