Police Chief Admits to Getting Key Detail Wrong in Fatal Shooting of Black Teen in Texas

A police chief in a Texas suburb where a black teenager was fatally shot by an officer over the weekend said he “misspoke” when he first said the vehicle the teen was in was moving toward cops in an “aggressive manner” when the officer opened fire.

Balch Springs Police Chief Jonathan Haber said at a news conference Monday that the vehicle carrying Jordan Edwards was in fact driving away from police when one officer fired the shot that killed the 15-year-old passenger.

Haber acknowledged the error after reviewing footage of the deadly incident in the Dallas area. “I take responsibility for that,” he said, according to CNN. The police chief also added that the video of the incident raised questions about whether the shooting was necessary, saying he doesn’t believe it “met our core values,” the Washington Post reported.

Police were summoned to a “large party” Saturday night after receiving a 911 call about “several underage kids drunk walking around,” the police department said in a statement. While they were inside the house, officers heard gunshots outside. Amid the chaos, police saw a vehicle reversing down the street.

The driver of the vehicle ignored officers’ commands to stop, Haber said. An officer, whose identity has not yet been released, shot at the vehicle, fatally striking Edwards, as the car continued to pull away. That officer has been placed on administrative duty, according to the Post.

The Dallas County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the incident.

Meanwhile, an attorney for Edwards’s family demanded that police face consequences for the shooting death. “We are declaring war on bad policing,” Lee Merritt said, according to the Post. “This has happened far too often.”