The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office unveiled police body camera footage on Thursday depicting a deputy's fatal shooting of an Air Force airman at his off-base apartment last week.


Senior Airman Roger Fortson, aged 23, was shot on Friday evening by a responding deputy amidst reports of a disturbance unfolding, as stated by the sheriff’s office. Located in the Florida Panhandle east of Pensacola, Okaloosa County served as the backdrop for this tragic incident.


Spanning slightly over four minutes, the video commences with the deputy's arrival at Fortson’s apartment complex and concludes post-Fortson's shooting, with the deputy promptly calling for medical aid.


Earlier that day, legal representatives for Fortson's family had urged the sheriff’s office to rectify the narrative surrounding his demise, asserting his innocence prior to the fatal encounter and suggesting the deputy had approached the incorrect door.


During a subsequent news briefing, Sheriff Eric Aden clarified that no definitive determination had been reached regarding the justification of the deputy’s actions.


Aden emphasized transparency, assuring the public of the absence of concealment or manipulation of facts that could precipitate premature judgments against either Fortson or the deputy. He maintained that the deputy had not trespassed into the wrong apartment nor forcibly entered Fortson’s residence, further noting the deputy's identification attempts. Aden declined to engage in questions from the press.


Fortson’s mother and legal representatives, during their own press conference, relayed information from Fortson's girlfriend, who had been on a FaceTime call with him during the encounter. Allegedly, the deputy erroneously entered the apartment and fatally shot Fortson upon observing him armed with a gun. Distraught, the girlfriend did not attend the conference, but the family and their representatives reviewed the footage privately before its public release.


The footage reveals the deputy arriving at the scene and being directed to apartment 1401 by a blurred-faced woman, who reported hearing arguing from that vicinity.


Upon knocking, the deputy audibly identifies himself as from the sheriff’s office and requests the door to be opened. Fortson, upon opening the door, is seen holding a gun facing downward. The deputy orders him to step back and subsequently fires multiple shots, leading to Fortson collapsing. The deputy instructs Fortson to drop the gun, to which Fortson replies that it's elsewhere, before the deputy calls for medical assistance.


Brian Barr, one of the family’s legal representatives, lamented the loss of Fortson due to what he termed a mistake of knocking on the wrong door. He critiqued the sheriff’s office for what he perceived as a misleading statement that implied Fortson's culpability in inciting the disturbance.


The sheriff’s office statement, citing a response to a disturbance call involving an armed individual, was viewed by Barr as intentionally shaping a narrative that justified Fortson's shooting.