The Shooting of Jordan Edwards
Police initially said they killed a 15-year-old after the car he was in reversed toward officers—but after reviewing body-cam footage, fired the officer involved.
The most surprising thing about Jordan Edwards’s death is not that police officers misrepresented what happened. It’s how quickly the police chief in Balch Springs, Texas, came forward and announced it.
Edwards, 15, was killed by Officer Roy Oliver in the Dallas suburb Saturday night, shot through the door of a car. Police explained that they were called to investigate reports of underage drinking at a house party. When they arrived, they heard what they believed were gunshots. A car of teenagers leaving the party was driving toward the police in reverse in an “aggressive manner.” Oliver opened fire, striking Edwards, a high-school freshman, in the head through a passenger-side door. He died
