Oklahoma Police Trial: Jury Selection Begins In Killing Of Unarmed Man

TULSA, OK -- Jury selection began under high security Monday in the trial of Tulsa police officer Betty Shelby, accused of the fatal shooting death of Terence Crutcher, with an unusually high 70 prospective jurors in the selection pool. Shelby, 43, is charged with first-degree manslaughter in the Sept. 16 shooting death of Crutcher, an unarmed 40-year-old black man.

In addition to the routine security checkpoints, an additional barrier has been established outside District Judge Doug Hammond's courtroom, where the trial is expected to last about two weeks. Fifth Street between the Tulsa County Courthouse and the Tulsa City-County Library also will be closed throughout the trial, police said.

Many black residents are convinced a police video shows the shooting was not justified, and view the trial as a referendum on whether the American legal system is unfair to blacks, according to Tulsa World. A Tulsa Fraternal Order of Police spokesman said the video evidence does not prove the shooting was unjustified.

Police are preparing for any scenario, but protests so far have been peaceful. At the time of the incident, President Obama asked then-Mayor Dewey Bartlett how Tulsa had avoided the rioting that followed similar shootings in other cities. A few groups, Aware Tulsa and Black Lives Matter Tulsa, are asking people on Facebook to show up at the courthouse Monday.

Police Chief Chuck Jordan said he would not discuss details of preparations his department has made except to say, “We are prepared for any eventuality.”

“My expectation is there will be a peaceful and appropriate reaction, regardless of the outcome,” he said.

Jordan said that if demonstrations are held, his officers “will be prepared to defend the right of the protesters, as we always have in the past.”

The prosecution is accusing Shelby of excessive force because he was obeying commands to raise his hands. Shelby claims she was in the right, because Crutcher refused her orders to lie on the ground and appeared to reach inside his SUV for what she thought was a gun.

Shelby could face between four years to life in prison if she is convicted. The incident intensified scrutiny of the use of force by police and allegations of racial bias by law enforcement in the United States.

Tulsa Police Photo