Texas officer charged with murder in fatal store shooting
A white police office rh as been charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a Black man following a reported disturbance at a convenience store in a small East Texas town, authorities said.
Jonathan Price was walking away from Wolfe City Police Officer Shaun Lucas on Saturday night when Lucas opened fire, killing Price, the Texas Rangers said in a statement released by the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Lucas ,22, remained jailed on Tuesday. Jail records show bail was set at $1 million.
It wasn't immediately known if Lucas had a lawyer who could comment on his behalf.
Lucas had been with the Wolfe City Police Department for a little less than six months when the shooting took place, according to records from t he Texas Commission on Law Enforcement. His prior law enforcement experience had been working as a jailer with the Hunt County Sheriff's Office for about five months.
Members of the community came together Monday evening for a vigil to mourn Price and demand justice. Civil rights attorney Lee Merritt said it was a diverse group of people who gathered.
“I know that people's voices are so powerful,” Merritt said Tuesday. “Anytime that communities stand up like we've seen all over the country, things actually begin to change.”
Merritt said Price' s family was relieved to hear that Lucas was arrested Monday night but said “that arrests hould' ve taken place two days ago.” He said it was a relatively quick arrest for a killing by an officer.
He noted that sometimes the arrest of an officer can come quickly, like in the killing last year in Fort Worth of Atatiana Jefferson, who was up late playing video games at home when an officer fired through her back window. In the Jefferson case, the officer was also charged within two days. Following the shooting Saturday night in Wolfe City, city officials only confirmed t hat an officer-involved shooting had occurred and the officer had been placed on administrative l eave pending an investigation by the Texas Rangers. It wasn't until Monday night that the Texas Rangers released a statement that provided more details and said that Lucas had been charged.
According to the Texas Rangers' statement, Lucas responded to a disturbance call on Saturday night following a report of a possible fight. He encountered Price ,31, who was reportedly involved in the disturbance, and Price“resisted in a non-threatening posture and began walking away,” the Texas Rangers said.