Unarmed Alabama student shot dead by campus cop 'had taken LSD' as officer who killed him is pictured for the first time



Gil Collar shot once in the chest on Saturday at University of South Alabama

Authorities: 'He had taken LSD at music festival and stripped off his clothes'

He 'assaulted two people in their vehicles and tried to bite a woman'

Footage shows 'he knocked on campus police HQ and chased after officer'

Officer, named as Trevis Austin, did not have his baton or pepper spray

Sheriff: 'Even if he did have these, he might have had to shoot him anyway'



The unarmed college student fatally shot by a campus police officer in the early hours of Saturday morning had taken LSD and assaulted three people before chasing him, authorities have revealed.

Gil Collar, 18, took the drug at an outdoor music festival before assaulting two people in vehicles and trying to bite a woman's arm, Mobile County Sheriff Sam Cochran said at a news conference on Tuesday.

The University of South Alabama freshman then went to the campus police headquarters, where he was shot by the officer, who has been identified as 27-year-old Trevis Austin.

Austin, who has been an officer for four years, is on leave while investigators look into the death.

Gunned down: College freshman Gil Collar (left) was shot dead by a campus police officer, identified as Trevis Austin (right), after taking LSD and acting erratically, authorities have revealed



He had come outside the police headquarters when he heard Collar, a 5-foot-7, 135-pound former high school wrestler, banging on its door, Cochran said.



Surveillance footage showed Collar naked and covered in sweat as he chased the officer for more than 50 feet, Fox News reported.

When the student got within five feet of the officer, Austin, who was not armed with pepper spray or a baton, as is required of campus officers, shot once and struck him in the chest.

'Had the officer had a Taser or some other less lethal instrument I don't know if that officer would have had an opportunity to shoulder his pistol and to use something else because the events were evolving so rapidly and he was approaching so close,' Cochran said.

He added that he had been extremely concerned when first hearing about the shooting, but understood why the officer had chosen to open fire after watching the video.

The authorities will not be releasing the footage publicly, he added.

Loss: Gilbert with his mother Bonnie, who said footage of the killing showed he had not touched the officer

Loss: Friends and family, including Collar's mother, right, said that the police officer should have been better equipped to deal with the intoxicated teenager. He was not carrying his baton or pepper spray Investigators are now looking into who gave Collar the LSD and could charged them with murder. Cochran revealed that people at the concert with the teenager had told them about his drug use. ANXIETY, PANIC AND PSYCHOTIC BEHAVIOUR: THE DANGERS OF LSD

LSD, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug also known as acid. It is usually added to absorbent paper, such as blotter paper, divided into small squares and taken orally. The effects of LSD are unpredictable and depend on the amount taken, the user's personality and mood, and the surroundings in which the drug is used. It can cause anxiety, panic, paranoia, psychotic behavior and an inability to recognize danger. If taken in a large enough dose, the drug produces delusions and visual hallucinations. Physical effects include dilated pupils, higher body temperature, increased heart rate and blood pressure, sweating, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, dry mouth, and tremors. The effects of LSD last for hours, typically clearly after 12 hours. LSD, which is also known as acid, can cause anxiety, paranoia, psychotic behavior and an inability to recognise danger, effects which typically last for around 12 hours. The revelations come after Collar's mother, Bonnie Smith Collar, said the surveillance video shows that her son never came into physical contact with the officer. Acquaintances had said that Collar appeared to be intoxicated as he took his clothes off, ran through the streets, screamed obscenities and claimed he was on a 'spiritual quest' before he was killed. 'Whatever caused the incident was something that made him act not in his normal personality,' she said. Mrs Collar said she had no idea why her son would be acting erratically as described and that the slight yet strong boy had never posed a threat before. 'The first thing on my mind is, freshman kids do stupid things,' she said. 'Campus police should be equipped to handle activity like that without having to use lethal force.' An attorney for the family, former Alabama Lt. Gov. Jere Beasley, said his firm's review of the shooting would include whether the officer followed department rules and regulations. Probe: Austin, an officer for four years, has been placed on leave while an investigation continues

The case has been handed over to Mobile County authorities and could take weeks to resolve. Meanwhile, friends and relatives are trying to figure out what could have happened to the quiet kid who showed so much promise. Collar grew up in the rural outskirts of Wetumpka, about 20 miles north of Montgomery. Brandon Ross, a sophomore at Jacksonville State University, said Collar moved to the neighborhood as an eight-year-old. 'I was the first person he met on the bus, and we've been friends ever since,' he said. 'He was the kid everybody liked.' 'It's completely opposite of the way he was,' said South Alabama student Chandler Wescovich of Long Beach, Miss., who became friends with Collar during his short time on campus. Others agreed the actions were out of character for the normally quiet and reserved Collar, whom friends described as a popular and good-looking high school wrestler.

Family: Collar is pictured with his older sister Doris Elisabeth Collar in this undated family photo Grown Up: Collar's family is struggling to understand the events that lead to his death. He is pictured with his older sister in an undated family photo

Collar wasn't known as a troublemaker and had only two minor scrapes with the law, according to court records: a speeding ticket and a citation for being a minor in possession of three cigarettes in March. He paid a $25 fine for the tobacco possession.

He was also so good-looking that his teammates didn't like standing next to him in team photos.

'The girls thought he was the best thing they had ever seen, and they may have been right,' Glass said.

A candlelight vigil is planned for 6 p.m. Tuesday at Wetumpka High School. Collar's mother said funeral arrangements have not yet been made yet.

On the Facebook page for the Vanguard , the school's student newspaper, Collar's friends and classmates expressed confusion that the officer felt the need to use deadly force on the young man.

Scene: The University of South Alabama campus, where Gilbert Thomas Collar was shot dead

'Gil went to my high school' wrote Melissa Mims, who said she was a good friend of Collar's sister Elisabeth and the rest of his fam ily.



'Gil was the kind of