Video shows cop shoots without warning at man firing into air in Ohio
CANTON POLICE DEPT. VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS / JAN. 1
This still image taken from Canton Police Department body camera video shows officers holding up their weapons before entering a house in Canton, Ohio. James Williams, 46, of Canton, was shot in the chest and pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.
JULIE VENNITTI BOTOS/THE CANTON REPOSITORY VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS
Marquetta Williams gestured to a section of the family’s wooden security fence, on Monday, in Canton, Ohio, as she recounted the events surrounding the death of her husband, James Williams, 46, who had been shooting celebratory gunfire into the air to ring in 2022 when he was shot to death by a Canton Police officer. Williams says the officer opened fire without warning firing through the fence surrounding the family’s enclosed backyard.
CLEVELAND >> Police in Ohio released body camera footage (viewer discretion is advised) today showing an officer firing multiple rounds through a wooden privacy fence without warning at someone shooting gunfire into the air on the other side.
James Williams, 46, of Canton, was shot in the chest minutes into the new year and pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. The video was released by the Canton Police Department. Viewer
The video shows the officer approach the tall privacy fence in a residential area as the sound of multiple gunshots ring out. Smoke from what appears to be a gun can be seen spurting into the air above the fence.
The officer then fires multiple shots through the fence. After firing, he yells, “Police, get down now! Police, Get down now!”
Marquetta Williams, James’ wife, told The Canton Repository her husband had been using her AR-15 rifle to fire celebratory rounds that she said were a New Year’s tradition in their neighborhood.
After the shooting, the video shows another officer taking cover behind a cruiser and yelling, “Show me your (expletive) hands” after Marquetta Williams steps onto the front porch of the home.
Don't miss out on what's happening!
Stay in touch with top news, as it happens, conveniently in your email inbox. It's FREE!
The officer who fired then shouts, “Everyone on the ground. Out here, on the sidewalk, on the ground.”
Marquetta Williams and others, including several children, can been seen gathering on the home’s front porch steps with their hands raised as the officer steps inside the home and finds James Williams lying on the living room floor, shot in the chest.
The video confirms what Marquetta Williams told The Canton Repository. Her husband was shot without warning.
Canton Police Chief Jack Angelo said Saturday the officer was outside his cruiser and confronted someone firing a weapon. He said the officer feared for his life.
Police spokesperson Lt. Dennis Garren said today the department had no additional comments and that the shooting is being investigated by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
The officer, who has not been identified, has been placed on administrative leave.
Williams was the father of four daughters and a step-father to two more children.
