Autopsy: Black Man was Shot 4 Times by Off-Duty NC Deputy

Jason Walker, 37, suffered injuries to his head, back, chest and thigh.

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Pandora Harrington, right, cries as she holds a sign with an image of Jason Walker during a demonstration in front of the Fayetteville Police Department, Jan. 9, 2022, in Fayetteville, N.C. An autopsy released Thursday, March 24, 2022, by North Carolina’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said that 37-year-old pedestrian Jason Walker had wounds to his head, chest, back and thigh in the Jan. 8 shooting. The deputy has said he was defending himself after Walker jumped on the hood of his truck. The shooting prompted protests by demonstrators who questioned authorities’ account of what happened.
Pandora Harrington, right, cries as she holds a sign with an image of Jason Walker during a demonstration in front of the Fayetteville Police Department, Jan. 9, 2022, in Fayetteville, N.C. An autopsy released Thursday, March 24, 2022, by North Carolina’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said that 37-year-old pedestrian Jason Walker had wounds to his head, chest, back and thigh in the Jan. 8 shooting. The deputy has said he was defending himself after Walker jumped on the hood of his truck. The shooting prompted protests by demonstrators who questioned authorities’ account of what happened.
Photo: (Andrew Craft/The Fayetteville Observer via AP (AP)

An autopsy by the North Carolina’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner found Jason Walker, 37, was shot four times by an off-duty deputy in Fayetteville, per the Associated Press. The shooting brought about protest in the community as Walker’s family argued he was killed unjustly.

Witnesses caught the incident on body camera footage. Per AP’s report, Walker was on foot and jumped onto the vehicle of off-duty deputy, Cumberland County Sheriff’s Lt. Jeffrey Hash. Walker reportedly ripped off one of the windshield wipers. Hash shot at Walker after getting out of his vehicle and called 911. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

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More on Walker’s cause of death from AP News:

The autopsy released by North Carolina’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said that 37-year-old Jason Walker had wounds to his head, chest, back and thigh in the Jan. 8 shooting in Fayetteville.

“The cause of death is listed as multiple gunshot wounds,” the report said.

The report noted that no alcohol or illegal drugs were found in his system.

Accompanying the autopsy was a report on the circumstances of death compiled by a medical examiner who came to the scene. The report, also released Thursday, said that Walker charged at Hash after he got out of his truck to ask him why he ripped the wipers off.

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The State Bureau of Investigation has examined the shooting. Walker’s family attorney Ben Crump previously said disagreements between pedestrians and officers shouldn’t result in the use of deadly force, per AP News.

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“A trained law enforcement officer knows that shooting someone that many times and in those parts of the body is shooting to kill. Jason should still be alive today,” Crump said.

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Demonstrators rallied at the Fayetteville police station to dispute the actions of deputy. Two witnesses at the protest said Walker was just walking home and was struck by the deputy’s vehicle, reported AP News.