Video of shot teen: ‘I don’t want to die’
New, unedited video of a Chandler police officer fatally shooting 17-yearold Anthony Cano after he reached for a gun he dropped shows the boy quietly complying with the officer’s demands after being shot twice in the back and telling him, “I don’t want to die.”
The 5 minutes of unredacted footage comes a little more than a week after Cano’s friends and family gathered in front of Chandler City Hall where they called for increased transparency into the shooting.
The incident began about 9:20 p.m. on Jan. 2 when Officer Chase BebakMiller noticed Cano riding a bicycle without a front headlight near Nevada and Erie streets. Bebak-Miller activated his lights and sirens after Cano began weaving into both lanes of traffic.
The unredacted video shows Cano later abandoning the bicycle near an empty canal and running toward Gazelle Meadows Park. No one is around. Bebak-Miller chases after Cano on foot and shouts at him to stop seconds before seeing Cano drop a gun and reach to pick it up.
Bebak-Miller shouts, “Weapon drawn! Get on the ground!” less than a second before shooting Cano once at close range and, more than a second later, again. Cano can be seen immediately collapsing after the first shot and is shot again while lying face down.
Officer screams at Cano to put his hands behind his back. He replies, ‘I’m sorry, sir. I can’t’
Bebak-Miller shouts at Cano to put his hands behind his back, which Cano seems to have difficulty doing. He eventually manages to slowly move his hands behind his back, but Bebak-Miller screams again for Cano to keep them behind his back when they fall to his sides.
“I’m sorry, sir,” Cano can be heard saying. “I can’t.”
“Keep ‘em there,” Bebak-Miller says. “I’m trying,” Cano replies. “Hey, I want to help you, OK?” Bebak-Miller says.
As other officers arrive at the scene, Cano then pleads for officers to “hurry.”
Cano can be heard saying, “I don’t want to die,” as officers cuff his hands.
Bebak-Miller pulls Cano on his side as other officers administer first aid to one of the bullet wounds. Cano tells the officer that he was trying to throw the gun away.
“Well, I thought you were pulling it on me, man,” Bebak-Miller responds. “That was f------ stupid.”
Cano tells officers that he can’t feel his legs as they continue to administer first aid. Officers cut off Cano’s jacket and shirt while repeatedly telling Cano to keep talking as Bebak-Miller walks away and turns off his body camera.
Chandler police have submitted investigation to Maricopa County Attorney’s Office
Cano was transported to a hospital where he died on Jan. 23.
Bebak-Miller has five years of experience with the department.
Chandler police said its Criminal Investigation Bureau completed its investigation into the shooting and submitted the case to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for review.
After the County Attorney’s Office determines whether to pursue criminal charges against the officer, Chandler police’s Use of Force Review Board will review the case before submitting it to a citizens review panel made up of 15 Chandler residents appointed by the mayor.
Last week, Cano’s mother, Renee Clum, was among family members who questioned why he was stopped in the first place.
“He was scared, coming home. He wasn’t doing anything wrong other than riding a bike without a light.”