Fatal police shooting may have been captured on Facebook Live

A man was shot to death by Indianapolis police Wednesday evening after a vehicle chase that may have been captured on Facebook Live, authorities said. An angry crowd gathered at the scene, CBS Indianapolis affiliate WTTV reported. It grew as large as 100 to 150 people by Wednesday night, according to The Indianapolis Star.

Community activists immediately questioned the need for the officer to have used force, the newspaper said.

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Assistant Chief Chris Bailey said officers observed someone driving recklessly on Interstate 65 and began the chase when the driver refused to pull over.

Supervisors ordered an end to the pursuit because the vehicle was moving close to 90 miles per hour, but it was later spotted by an officer after it was parked, Bailey said.

The Star reports the video circulating on social media, whose authenticity hasn’t been confirmed, appears to show the driver thinking he’d managed to lose the pursuing police but parking after getting confused about where he was.

The officer who saw the car left his vehicle, which prompted the suspect to run, Bailey said. The suspect was shot during the ensuing confrontation, which involved only the two men.

Crowd at scene where Indianapolis police fatally shot driver of car they were pursuing on evening of May 6, 2020. WTTV

Bailey said investigators are aware of the Facebook video showing a man speeding and indications of a shooting, but he wasn’t prepared to confirm its authenticity.

WTTV reports the video appears to show a man in a car during the chase. You hear him running after getting out of the car, but it’s hard to see anything from that point on. The video has the man running and a voice saying something, with the man shouting an expletive back. A few seconds later, there’s a loud buzz. He curses and the phone seems to drop. The video shows the sky after several shots are heard being fired. The audio then picks up what appears to be officers speaking. 

That goes on until someone holding a notebook bends over the frame and the video cuts out.

The officer has been placed on administrative leave as the department investigates what happened, Bailey said.

Wednesday’s shooting was at least the fourth involving an Indianapolis police officer this year. Two in February didn’t result in officers or suspects being hit. Officer Breann Leath was fatally shot at the scene of a domestic disturbance last month.

Early Thursday, Indianapolis police fatally shot a man they say was firing at them with a rifle after they responded to a call about a possible burglary, WTTV reports.