Muskogee Police: Non-Lethal Response Not An Option In Shooting

Muskogee police released the body camera footage of an officer who shot and killed a suspect last weekend.

They said they did so, because they want to be completely open with the public.

It all started when Pastor Aundrea Jones called police about a man with a gun, threatening to kill a woman.

1/23/2015 Related Story: Witness To Fatal Muskogee Shooting Says Video Reveals Truth

"He's here with a gun. I need a police officer. I got to stop it. A whole bunch of people are here and I don't need nobody hurt," Jones said.

The call was initially dispatched to officers as a disturbance call, not a man with a gun call.

Officer Chansey McMillin got there and asked the suspect, Terence Walker, to show his hands. Walker complies, moving his cell phone to his left hand, then the officer begins a pat down for safety.

"Relax for me, just relax. Why you shaking? Relax,” McMillin says in the video.

After Walker elbows the officer, he runs but doesn't make it very far before he drops something on the ground, tries to pick it up, drops it again and picks it back up. Police said it was a gun.

1/23/2015 Related Story: Muskogee Police Release Video, Still Images Of Officer Shooting, Killing Suspect

You can see innocent people in a car near him and people from the church were gathering behind the officer.

Police said once Walker raised the gun, the officer fired five shots.

McMillin's Attorney, Scott Wood: "Here's one of the dangers of a body camera. It's nowhere as acute as human vision, so Officer McMillin immediately recognizes this is a gun as soon as it hits the pavement."
Lori: "So, you might look and say, ‘I can't really tell,' but, he could see it because it's different than a camera."
Scott: "Yes."

Video shows Jones wanted to check on Walker, but was told to stay back because the officer didn't know if the suspect could still fire the gun.

Police said a Tazer wasn't an option because Walker was too far away, plus, officers don't use a non-lethal weapon against a lethal one.

The video shows a cell phone still in Walker's left hand and the gun under him. Police said the gun was cocked and loaded with a bullet in the chamber, which means it was ready to fire.

This is his second police shooting in the past year.

Once the OSBI finishes investigating the shooting, the case will be turned over to the DA, who will decide if it was justified.

McMillin earned the bronze star while serving tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.