Update: Deputy who Shot Florida Airman on Trial for Manslaughter

On May 3, 2024, a Florida Okaloosa County Sheriff Deputy shot and killed Senior Airman Roger Fortson. The deputy, Eddie Duran, was responding to a false, anonymous tip about supposed domestic violence in an apartment complex.

Fortson was playing with his dog and on the phone with his girlfriend. When Roger Fortson realized someone was insistently knocking on the door and demanding entry, he accessed his legally owned pistol, and with the pistol held by his side, pointed at the floor, opened the door.

The deputy immediately shot Fortson several times, then demanded Fortson "drop the gun". Fortson's pistol was already on the floor. Fortson was on the floor, mortally wounded, dying.

After an investigation by the Sheriff's department internal affairs, Fortson (correction, should be Duran)  was fired. The Sheriff's Office did not file criminal charges, because the incident was being criminally investigated by an independent agency, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. AmmoLand covered the tragic incident four months ago.

To bring the reporting up to date: Former deputy Eddie Duran has been charged with manslaughter. He has been arrested. He is currently out on a bond of $100,000.

This horrible tragedy underscores how critical it is to be aware and make the right decisions when a person is considering using deadly force. Duran made some very bad decisions. It cost Roger Fortson his life. His family and others near him will live with the pain of his loss for a very long time. His mother made this statement after former deputy Duran was charged. From wfla.com:

“I hope this brings about change and it teaches others that you can’t just kill people,” his mother Chantemekki Fortson said Friday after learning of the charges. “Because he should have waited for back up. And investigated a little more.”

Former deputy, Eddie Duran is also living a nightmare. The event was on video from beginning to the end. All the conversations he had and the information he had were recorded. There is little question about what physically happened in the tragic incident. The questions are all about what happened inside Duran's head. USAToday reports Eddie Duran faces up to 30 years in prison. When advocating for a lower bail amount, Duran's lawyer made this comment, as reported by usatoday.com:

"He has spent his entire life, his entire career, and his military career, trying to save people — help people," Smith said. "He's not a danger to the community."

Analysis:

It is always easy to determine what could have been done better, after the fact. We live in an imperfect world. The videos show Deputy Eddie Duran making serious, fatal mistakes. Manslaughter seems an appropriate charge for the jury to decide on.

As with many tragedies, this one had a cascade of errors leading to the final, fatal, encounter. Deputy Duran was lead to believe the there was a significant history of violence at Duran's apartment. There wasn't any. The initial caller, apparently listening at an air conditioning duct, misinterpreted the interactions of Duran and his dog, on a video call with his girlfriend, as serious domestic violence. There wasn't any. The apartment manager thought she had knowledge of problems at the apartment, although she admitted she was not certain if it was the apartment she sent Deputy Duran to.

These errors compounded and likely created a perception of serious danger to Deputy Duran, where none existed. A jury may hear all of this, the dispatcher tapes, and perhaps, testimony from the person who started it all, who has been identified. Duran has already paid a price, and he will be paying more. He is alive. Roger Fortson is not.

Police work is being inexorably altered as digital recording technology creeps into every aspect of our lives. It makes police more honest. It removes some doubts. But body cameras and security cameras are not the entire truth. They do not convey inner thoughts and emotions, motivations, impressions, and reactions. Some of that will fall to the Florida jury.

This correspondent has no doubt Eddie Duran regrets ever being on that call, every going to that apartment, and most certainly, ever drawing and pulling the trigger on a surprised and innocent Roger Fortson.  Perhaps some good will come of this tragedy. Perhaps some neighbors will not be so quick to suspect evil of their neighbors. Perhaps other police and deputies will be a bit more careful. It is what Roger Fortson's mother hopes for.

©2024 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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