CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Highway Patrol state trooper who fatally shot a deaf man in Charlotte last August will not face charges for the shooting.
Mecklenburg County District Attorney Andrew Murray said that because Trooper Jermaine Saunders believed Daniel Harris posed an imminent threat, his use of deadly force was justified.
Trooper Saunders stated thatΒ he fired one shot after Harris exited his vehicle and began running at him with a metal object.
“Trooper Saunders, who had taken a βfelony stopβ position consisting of exiting his patrol vehicle and drawing his service gun, had only seconds to decide why Harris was running at him, what the metal object was in Harrisβ hand and how to protect himself and prevent his gun from being compromised,” according to a report released by Murray.
The shooting was the conclusion of a traffic stop on August 18, 2016 that escalated into a chase on I-485. Β The situation continued onto Rocky River Road and Seven Oaks Drive, where Daniel Harris was shot and killed.
Click hereΒ to read Murray’s full report.
