Video After The Jump
TEMPLE HILLS, Md. (AP/WJZ) — A Prince George’s County police officer has been charged with murder in the shooting death of a handcuffed man in Temple Hills Monday night.
At a news conference Tuesday evening, Police Chief Hank Stawinski announced Cpl. Michael Owen, Jr. has been charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter and weapons charges in the death of William Howard Green, 43, of Washington, D.C.
“I have concluded that what happened last night is a crime,” Stawinski told reporters.
The deadly shooting occurred Monday night during an apparent struggle inside the cruiser after Prince George’s County police officers responded to reports that a driver had struck multiple vehicles near the Temple Hills community, department spokeswoman Christina Cotterman told news outlets.
When officers located the driver, they smelled PCP and believed the man was under the influence, Cotterman said.
The officer got into the driver’s seat after the suspect was taken into custody and placed in the front passenger seat, according to Cotterman, who said that conforms with department policy, which states, “One officer may transport one arrestee, who will occupy the right front seat. For vehicles equipped with transport partitions, arrestees will occupy the right rear seat.”
Police said Owen’s vehicle did not have a partition.
Two independent witnesses told police they either saw or heard a struggle, and heard loud bangs coming from the cruiser, according to Cotterman.
Police said Tuesday Owen shot Green seven times.
Owen and another officer performed life-saving measures and took the man to a hospital. He died a short time later.
The shooting wasn’t caught on body-camera video because the officer didn’t have one, Cotterman said. Investigators were looking for surveillance cameras in the area that may have recorded the shooting.
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