Charlotte, N.C. – (Tuesday, February 1, 2022) – Today the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) released body-worn camera (BWC) video of an officer-involved shooting that occurred on November 5, 2021, that was ordered for release after the media petitioned the courts.
PRIOR TO THE EVENT THAT SAME DAY
Just before 6:00 a.m. on November 5, 2021, CMPD officers responded to the 6700 block of Winding Cedar Trail in the Hickory Grove Division. The call was in reference to a subject (Mr. Derrell Raney), who said he found two dead bodies behind the address. Officers searched the area and found no evidence or validity to Mr. Raney's claims. Members of CMPD's Crisis Intervention Team also responded. They urged Mr. Raney to be evaluated at the hospital but he refused any kind of treatment. The officers found Mr. Raney to be lucid and not a danger to himself or others, so they did not have cause to seek involuntary commitment papers on the family's behalf. Officers reached out to Mr. Raney's family to notify them of the situation and explain how to seek an involuntary commitment order.
LATER THAT DAY
Around 4:30 p.m. later that afternoon, CMPD officers responded to 9025 Albemarle Road in reference to an unrelated call for service. While addressing this call, officers responded to a subsequent, yet separate, call for service at the Food Lion next door at 9021 Albemarle Road. While officers were addressing this call for service, Walmart security approached officers and stated that someone pointed a firearm at one of their security guards in the parking lot in the 9100 block of Albemarle Road.
Just after 5:50 p.m. Officers Longworth and Edmunds were flagged down by Walmart security and responded to a different area of the parking lot to investigate the information they received from the security personnel. The security guard pointed them in the direction of Mr. Raney who was seated in the grass with a backpack in front of him and his right hand concealed inside the backpack. Both officers gave verbal commands to Mr. Raney to show them his hands. Mr. Raney did not comply and removed the firearm from the bag while keeping it partially concealed. The officers continued to command Mr. Raney to drop the firearm. Mr. Raney then began to raise the firearm up in the direction of the officers. Officer Edmunds and Officer Longworth discharged their service weapons. The officers secured Mr. Raney's firearm. Arriving officers began life-saving efforts. Mr. Raney was transported to the hospital but succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced deceased around 6:30 p.m.
The SBI is the primary investigative agency for this case. As is standard procedure with any officer-involved shooting, the Internal Affairs Bureau is conducting a separate but parallel investigation to determine whether CMPD policies and procedures were adhered to during the incident. The officers are on administrative assignment, which is standard policy whenever an officer discharges a service weapon.
The investigation into this case is active and ongoing. Any additional questions pertaining to this investigation should be directed to the SBI. For additional information about this case, please refer to the report: 20211105-1754-00.
Below is a link to a critical incident briefing video breaking down BWC footage & explaining the incident in greater detail:
https://youtu.be/lY0gSKaRmjQ
You can view the full body-worn camera video here: