The state Attorney General's office says no out-of-state investigator will likely be appointed in the case of a recent police-involved shooting in Dover - despite calls for one from the state NAACP.
Police responding to a tip about a suspect with a handgun shot Terrance Fletcher in the thigh during a foot chase in the downtown area last Friday afternoon. The 21-year-old Fletcher, who is black, was treated for his injuries. He's now facing weapons charges and is being held on bond.
The Central Branch Delaware NAACP called this week for the state to find an independent investigator to look into the shooting. Branch president La Mar Gunn says he has faith in the Dover police department and state attorney general's abilities to do their due diligence, but feels this situation is unique.
"In this particular case, it's just a strong sign to say we don't have anything to hide where the police are concerned. And that we want a community that 100% trusts what we're doing," Gunn told Delaware Public Media Tuesday.
Gunn says a completely independent investigator with no Delaware ties would give the community the utmost confidence in whatever comes of the case. He says their concerns date in part to the 2013 incident of a Dover police officer caught on video kicking a suspect in the head. That officer wasn't initially indicted when a grand jury heard the case last year, which Gunn says shed light on possible objectivity issues within the criminal justice system.
AG's office spokesman Carl Kanefsky says the State Department of Justice's new Office of Civil Rights and Public Trust, created by Attorney General Matt Denn when he took office in January, is now in place to examine cases like last week's police-involved shooting in Dover.
"These are investigators who are separate from the investigators that typically work with police agencies, so they're purely objective and removed from any day-to-day contact with these agencies," said Kanefsky. "So we have complete faith and trust in their objectivity and the job they'll do in the review."
Gunn says he still feels they need an "outside party," and hopes the AG's office might consider. Kanefsky wouldn't comment on next steps, but said Denn is typically open to those kinds of discussions.
And Gunn says conversation is key right now. He says incidents like last week's can bring communities together, or can drive racial and police tensions even higher. He's concerned that's already happening, after two locals were arrested for disorderly conduct in the wake of Fletcher's shooting after allegedly shouting at police on the scene. Gunn adds that the fact that bystanders ran when police arrived just before the shooting, according to witnesses, illustrates a larger issue.
"People are afraid of the police and I think that's a problem. If an officer pulls up, you should not feel as if you could possibly die," said Gunn. "So naturally people panic and run, and they had no reason to run."
Dover Police released additional details on the incident Tuesday. Police say Fletcher was holding a gun as he ran toward officers, adding that he threw that .38 caliber revolver after being struck. Police say that gun was recovered at the scene and Fletcher in a interview with investigators Tuesday admitted to possessing that gun.
Police also say Fletcher was on active probation and ran when approached by a state Probation and Parole office working with Dover's Street Crimes Unit.
The officer that shot Fletcher is white and has been on the force three years. He's been placed on paid leave as investigations continue.
