No charges for Texas officer in killing of college student
A grand jury has declined to indict a North Texas police officer in the fatal shooting of a college student who had refused to drop a frying pan and a cleaver and then advanced toward them with the pan
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A grand jury declined to indict a North Texas police officer in the fatal shooting of a college student who had refused to drop a frying pan and a cleaver and then advanced toward them with the pan.
The Denton County grand jury made the decision Thursday about the officer, whose name police have not released.
Darius Tarver, a 23-year-old University of North Texas student, was shot in January 2020 after residents of an apartment complex in Denton, located 40 miles (64 kilometers) northwest of Dallas called 911 and said a man was banging on doors and breaking light fixtures.
Body camera footage showed that he was shocked twice with a stun gun before he was fatally shot.
Tarver’s family and their attorney have said he was in the midst of a mental health crisis after suffering a brain injury in an earlier car crash.
Denton police said in a written statement that an internal investigation of the shooting to determine whether departmental policies were followed will end within 30 days. The officer remains on administrative duty.