Ben Crump, a lawyer specializing in civil rights, said that Florida police officers violated the rights of Roger Fortson, a 23-year-old airman who was shot and killed by a Florida sheriff’s deputy on May 3.
Speaking from Florida with Fortson’s family by his side, Crump urged the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office to be honest about what happened the night Fortson was killed.
“They thought he was a bad guy,” Crump said. “But he was a good guy. They killed a good guy. They took a good person from his family. They took a patriot from us.”
According to Crump, Fortson was alone in his apartment on the night of the shooting when he heard a knock at the door.
Fortson asked who was at the door but got no response. Minutes later, there was an “aggressive” knock on the door, but Fortson couldn't see anyone when he looked out the peephole.
Fortson then got his legally owned gun. As he was going back to the living room, police burst through the door.
After seeing the gun, police shot Fortson six times.
According to a witness who was on FaceTime with Fortson during the shooting, Fortson fell to the ground stating, “I can’t breathe,” after he was shot. He was taken to a hospital, where he died.
The witness stated that there was no disturbance in the apartment and that Fortson was alone when police burst in.
In a statement released last week, the sheriff’s office said that a deputy was responding to a call of a disturbance at Fortson’s apartment complex and reacted in self-defense after encountering an armed man.
But lawyers for Fortson’s family criticized the police department for a “disingenuous” narrative that smears Fortson’s name by implying he had committed a crime.
“Tell the truth,” Crump said. “That’s not so hard to do.”
“The truth is this is about the Constitution, because in the state of Florida, I mean, we encourage gun ownership,” said Crump. “Roger had a right to the Second Amendment … and he also had a right to the Fourth Amendment, to be free of unlawful searches and seizures. Especially in his home.”
Attorney Brian Barr, who is representing Fortson’s family with Crump, added that the young airman could have been anyone.
“Every one of us sit in our houses every day, and every one of us, if somebody we don’t know comes into our house, are going to defend ourselves?” Barr said. “He lost his life because they knocked on the wrong door.”
Barr added that the lawyers and family just want openness from the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office.
“We want to see the body cam video. We want to know what happened. We want the mistakes to be owned,” said Barr. “And we’re not going away until that transparency happens, and we’re not going to let them forget Roger. That’s not going to happen, not on our watch.”
Crump said the family will meet with Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden on Thursday. He expects body camera footage of the shooting to be shared with the family at the meeting.
The Hill has contacted the sheriff’s office for a comment.
