The investigation into the shooting death of a Black man by an off-duty North Carolina sheriff’s deputy involves claims of self-defense, the attorney for the law enforcement officer said.
Lt. Jeffrey Hash, who has been placed on leave by the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, is accused of fatally shooting Jason Walker on Jan. 8.
During a 911 call, Hash said he shot someone who jumped on his truck, beat on the windshield and ripped off the windshield wiper while he was inside the vehicle with his wife and daughter.
NC SEES PROTESTS AFTER OFF-DUTY DEPUTY SHOOTS BLACK MAN WHO POLICE SAY JUMPED ON MOVING TRUCK
Pandora Harrington holds up a sign with an image of Jason Walker during a demonstration in front of the Fayetteville Police Department on Sunday.
(Reuters)
Parrish Daughtry, the attorney representing Hash, told Fox News she couldn’t discuss specifics of the case but said the investigation being led by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation involves claims of various types of self-defense.
“In North Carolina, we have claims of self-defense, defense of others, defense of vehicles and it would involve those claims,” she said.
The Fayetteville Police Department said Walker, 37, ran into traffic and jumped onto a moving pickup truck. During the encounter, Hash allegedly shot him and then called 911 in a frantic state. Walker died at the scene.
“Yes, ma’am. It’s an emergency. I’m on Shenandoah and Bingham Drive. I just had a male jump on my vehicle and break my windshield. I just shot him,” Hash is heard telling the 911 operator.
Investigators with the NC SBI have assumed the investigation surrounding the shooting that occurred on Jan. 8, 2022, along Bingham Drive.
((Fayetteville Police Department))
He said he was driving his Ford F-150 when the victim “came flying across Bingham Drive, running, and I stopped so I wouldn’t hit him and he jumped on my car and started screaming.”
The FBI office in Charlotte told Fox News on Tuesday that it was aware of the shooting and was prepared to investigate “if information comes to light of a potential federal violation.”
Parrish said her client, a 16-year veteran of the sheriff’s office, is devastated by the shooting.
“He is devastated for the family of Mr. Walker. He’s devastated for his own family. He’s devastated for the community,” she said.
Demonstrators get emotional during a Justice for Jason Walker demonstration in front of the Fayetteville Police Dept. on Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022.
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Walker’s family is being represented by civil rights attorney Ben Crump who said Tuesday they have reason to believe “that this was a case of ‘shoot first, ask later,’ a philosophy seen all too often with law enforcement.”
Protesters have disputed the police department’s account of events and have staged demonstrations in the days since Walker’s death.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
