Police Abuse

C.J. Ciaramella | 8.27.2024 12:59 PM

The former Florida Panhandle police officer who shot and killed Roger Fortson, a 23-year-old Air Force service member, earlier this year has been charged with manslaughter and arrested, the Associated Press reported.

State Attorney Ginger Bowden Madden's office announced Friday it had filed charges against former Okaloosa County deputy Eddie Duran, 38, for manslaughter with a firearm in the May 3 killing of Fortson. The A.P. reported that Duran turned himself in and was booked into jail on Monday.

Fortson was fatally shot after Duran arrived at his apartment complex in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, responding to a call about an alleged domestic disturbance. Duran knocked on Fortson's door, and Fortson opened it while holding a legally owned handgun at his side.

"This decision marks the first step towards justice for the family of Roger Fortson," Benjamin Crump, a prominent civil rights attorney representing Fortson's family, said in a statement to local media. "Nothing........

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