On September 16, 2016, white Tulsa police officer Betty Shelby, 43, fatally shot an unarmed black man named Terence Crutcher, 40. Shelby was put on administrative leave without pay and is facing a first-degree manslaughter charge. A jury trial is scheduled for May 8. By her side is her husband and fellow police officer David Shelby who was in a helicopter watching her interaction with Crutcher when Crutcher was shot dead. There is an audio recording of the pilot of the helicopter, Officer Mark Richert saying Crutcher “looks like a bad dude.” Attorneys for Betty Shelby have asked a judge to prohibit jurors from hearing the “irrelevant” recording.
One of here defense attorneys, Shannon McMurray, has also requested that the jury be allowed to hear about Crutcher’s past which includes a “history of drug use and state incarceration.” Prosecutors argue that such information is not relevant to how he died, “pointing out that Shelby did not know Crutcher’s background at the time of the shooting.” Betty Shelby will be interviewed by Bill Whitaker on 60 Minutes, where she will say race was not a factor in the shooting, on Sunday, April 2 (7pm, CBS).