Lawyers for US Airman Killed by FL Deputy Call for Action

Roger Fortson celebrated his 24th birthday on May 1.

Three days later, the US Airman was fatally shot six times by a Florida sheriff’s deputy who responded to the wrong apartment for a disturbance call, according to civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump.

The sheriff’s office released a different narrative of how the shooting unfolded vaguely stating an Okaloosa deputy responding to a disturbance call reacted in self-defense after he encountered a man armed with a gun.

Amid chants of “Clear Roger’s name!’, Fortson’s family and their lawyers demanded the Okaloosa Sheriff’s Department “correct this narrative.”

“When you make a mistake, you own up to it,” Crump said. “You don’t try to justify killing a good guy. The Okaloosa Sheriff’s Department needs to own up to this. Tell the truth.”

Attorney Brian Barr said the sheriff department’s statement on the shooting made it appear that Fortson was part of a dispute and that it took place outside.

“It made people try to forget what happened,” Barr said. “It made it seem like he was at fault.”

How the deadly shooting unfolded

Fortson was on Facetime with his girlfriend and alone in his off-base apartment on Racetrack Road when he heard a knock at the door around 4:30 p.m., Crump said.

After Fortson did not receive a response to who was at the door, he went to get his legally owned gun. When he was walked back to the living room, police used “excessive” force to get into the apartment, not knowing if it was the correct location, Crump said.

After the barrage of bullets, Fortson was taken to a local hospital where he died.

“We have to correct this narrative,” Crump said. “Roger Fortson was the best America had to offer.”

Crump said this is a Second Amendment issue since Fortson legally owned his gun and Florida is a right-to-carry state.

“When we think about the people we want to have guns, he is exhibit A,” Crump said. “He was trained. He’s very responsible.”

The deputy also violated Fortson’s Fourth Amendment right when he unlawfully seized and searched the apartment, according to Crump.

“He was protecting us so we could have all of those constitutional rights,” Crump said. “He was just in his apartment minding his business.”

Crump said his firm is watching the deputy’s body camera video today and it should become public shortly.

Newsweek requested the body camera footage from the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Department but was told “due to this being an open/active investigation currently, BWC videos are unavailable for release.” The department also denied a request to release the affidavit.

The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Department has not responded to Newsweek’s requests for comment.

‘They took from his mama a good guy’

Fortson’s mother, Chantemekki Fortson, called her son a “patriot” and talked about celebrating his 24th birthday just days before his death.

“Roger was given to me as a gift,” Chantemekki said. “My baby was my everything.”

Chantemekki said her son wanted to put his family in a house and show the world how “to love unconditionally.”

His attorneys also emphasized that Fortson “respected authority” and would have “never shot at a police officer.”

“They shot a good guy. They killed a good guy. They took from the Air Force a good guy,” Crump said. “They took from his mama a good guy.”

Fortson was “proud to be in the Air Force,” Crump said, adding that the Senior Airman wanted to serve his country since he was a child. He believed in “truth” as well as “dignity as the principles of America.”

“He did everything that he did for his family,” Crump said. “He was trying to give his family a better life.”

The lawyers and Fortson’s family demanded transparency from the Okaloosa Sheriff’s Department.

“We’re not going away until that transparency happens,” Barr said. “We’re not going to forget Roger. We’re not going to let that happen, not on our watch, not to this kid, not to this family.”