WARNING: This video may be considered disturbing to some viewers.
POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY, Okla. – Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for the man accused of killing a Tecumseh police officer earlier this year.
Around 11:30 p.m on March 26, Officer Justin Terney pulled over a vehicle near Benson Park and Gordon Cooper.
“You got your driver’s license and registration ready?” dash cam video showed Officer Justin Terney asking Brooklyn Williams during the traffic stop.
Williams gave Officer Terney her real name, but 36-year-old Byron Shepard lied from the very beginning, telling Officer Terney his name is James Bishop.
Shepard was wanted for stealing a pickup and equipment from an oil drilling company.
Dispatch, of course couldn’t find Shepard’s false identity, and Shepard proceeded to make small talk with the 22-year-old officer.
“Y’all been busy?” Shepard asked.
“Nope, it’s Sunday man,” Officer Terney replied.
“That don’t mean nothing,” Shepard said.
“Never busy on a Sunday, not around here,” Officer Terney said.
Later Officer Terney told Shepard he needed to be honest and give him some identification.
Then, dash cam video shows Shepard running off into a wooded area.
You can hear Officer Terney screaming, “You’re going to get tased! Stop!”
District Attorney Richard Smothermon said Officer Terney tased Shepard as they cleared a fence.
Then a backup officer, who trained Officer Terney, yelled “Get on the ground, get on the ground!”
In the video, you can hear Officer Terney say “Central, I’ve been hit.”
“We believe Officer Terney returned fire after he was hit,” Smothermon said.
Smothermon said Terney was shot twice, and Shepard was shot at least three times.
They were both rushed to nearby hospitals.
Officials say Terney underwent emergency surgery and was listed in critical condition.
However, police confirmed the officer succumbed to his injuries and passed away after surgery.
After Shepard underwent surgery, his condition was upgraded to serious.
While he was in the hospital, the district attorney filed a first-degree murder charge against Shepard.
Shepard was later released from the hospital and booked into the Oklahoma County Jail.
District Attorney Smothermon said that he could have charged Shepard with additional charges, but feels that a first-degree murder charge that could possibly result in the death penalty is enough.
The woman who was driving the vehicle Shepard was in when they were pulled over has also been charged for harboring a fugitive and second-degree murder.
A judge ruled Thursday that there is enough evidence against Shepard and Brooklyn Williams to stand trial.
According to the Shawnee News-Star, prosecutors said they are officially seeking the death penalty for Shepard.
