Tucson police officer fired after fatally shooting a 61-year-old in a mobility scooter nine times

Authored by cbsnews.com and submitted by ExactlySorta
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A Tuscon police officer has been fired after fatally shooting a man sitting in a mobility scooter, officials announced.

Tucson Police Chief Chris Magnus condemned the shooting in a news conference Tuesday after body camera video and surveillance footage showed former police officer Ryan Remington shooting 61-year-old Richard Lee Richards nine times after Richards was suspected of shoplifting from a Walmart.

"His use of deadly force in this incident is a clear violation of department policy and directly contradicts multiple aspects of our use of force and training," said Magnus.

Surveillance footage from the Walmart showed Remington and an employee slowly trailing Richards through a parking lot while Richards is in a mobility scooter. Police said an employee told Remington, who was off-duty and working security at the store, that Richards stole a toolbox.

Remington asked Richards for a receipt but Richards brandished a knife and continued toward another store, according to Magnus.

According to the Walmart employee, Richards said, "If you want me to put down the knife, you're going to have to shoot me," Magnus said.

Another officer arrived as Richards made his way toward the entrance of a Lowe's Hardware Store. In one of the videos, Remington is heard asking Richards to stop.

When Richards refused to stop, Remington opened fire, with nine rounds hitting Richards before he fell to the ground.

Surveillance video shows Remington using handcuffs on Richards right after the shooting.

"Officers rendered medical care, but a short time later Mr. Richards was declared dead," the police chief said.

Attorney Mike Storie, who is representing Remington, told CBS News that the videos only shows parts of what happened.

"These were cut and pasted videos that show about 20% of what actually happened last night," Storie said.

He added that his client's close proximity to Richards did not allow the officer to safely deploy his taser. In a statement released Tuesday, Tucson Mayor Regina Romero called the shooting "unconscionable and indefensible." The case is now under investigation by the Pima County Attorney's Office.

austin0matic on December 1st, 2021 at 20:25 UTC »

Attorney Mike Storie, who is representing Remington, told CBS News that the videos only shows parts of what happened.

"These were cut and pasted videos that show about 20% of what actually happened last night," Storie said.

He added that his client's close proximity to Richards did not allow the officer to safely deploy his taser.

The officer was the one closing the distance! He came up FROM BEHIND as the dude was going the opposite direction on a fucking motor scooter.

no0ns on December 1st, 2021 at 20:20 UTC »

This is just an execution. Pepper? Baton? Tazer? Just stop the scooter? Pull him off it? No, dude just shoots him 9 times at point blank range. I hope this fucking jackass spends the next few decades in prison and has to pay heavily.

Badfiish on December 1st, 2021 at 19:14 UTC »

Arrest him for murder Holy Shit

He literally paused and shot that guy in the brain