Tulsa attorney: Deputy not certified on gun in fatal shooting

John Bacon | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption See what happened before deputy fired gun instead of Taser Authorities say Eric Harris was trying to sell an undercover officer a gun when more officers arrived and he fled. Police cameras captured the exchange, chase and deadly shooting by reserve deputy Robert Bates, who says he meant to fire his stun gun.

The volunteer Oklahoma deputy charged in the shooting death of an unarmed black man was not certified on the .357-magnum revolver he fired, and the personal weapon was not on the Tulsa sheriff's list of approved firearms, attorneys for the dead man's family said Monday.

Missing from the records of Reserve Deputy Robert Bates are three years of firearms qualifications and almost all records of his field training, the Tulsa World reported, citing files the attorneys released Saturday in the killing of 44-year-old Eric Harris during an undercover drug arrest April 2.

Attorney Dan Smolen said the records, supplied by the sheriff's office, document only 24 hours of firearms training, none on a .357 magnum. The training covered an AR-15 rifle, a SIG Sauer pistol and a Glock .45-caliber pistol.

To become an advanced reserve deputy, Oklahoma requires 276 hours of state law enforcement courses and 480 of supervised field training.

Among the new batch of records is a handwritten March 2009 note on Bates' corporate stationery declaring he completed 507 hours of training. The 73-year-old Bates has told investigators he became an advanced deputy in 2007, the Tulsa paper noted.

The department and a lawyer for Bates have released copies of various records. The sheriff's office has refused media requests to release all of Bates' records.

Tulsa deputy: Deadly mistake 'can happen to anyone' Robert Bates, the Tulsa volunteer deputy charged with manslaughter for a killing in which he mistook his gun for his taser, is speaking out. On NBC's 'Today' he apologized to the victim's family and denied claims he wasn't properly trained.

Earlier Monday, Sheriff Stanley Glanz said the FBI had reviewed the fatal shooting of Harris and determined that the sheriff's department did nothing wrong.

Glanz said the FBI determined that Harris' civil rights were not violated. The FBI did not immediately return a call for comment on the investigation.

Addressing concerns about Bates' records, Glanz said if any are missing it's because Oklahoma law allows their destruction after seven years.

He also said there is no evidence that any training records for Bates were falsified, a contention raised by lawyers for the Harris family and reported by the Tulsa World.

"Mr. Bates has been to the range several times and is qualified, that's documented," Glanz said.

Bates is charged with second-degree manslaughter in the killing of Harris. He is free on $25,000 bail.

Harris had run from deputies conducting a sting operation April 2 when he was wrestled to the ground. Bates arrived at the scene and shot Harris, who died a short time later. Bates, an insurance executive by profession, said he had meant to draw and fire his stun gun.

Raw: Okla. Officer shoots gun instead of taser Tulsa County reserve deputy Bob Bates said he thought he was holding a stun gun when he shot and killed 44-year-old Eric Harris on April 2nd as Harris struggled with deputies trying to arrest him. (April 12)

"We presented a case to the district attorney," Glanz said. "He has a duty to prosecute it and he will do that."

Glanz said a review would take place to determine if procedures should change in the department — but added that a review by a state commission indicated department polices and procedures met federal standards.

Glanz said the two met 25 years ago when he was looking for car insurance. Bates served as Glanz's campaign chairman in his 2012 re-election campaign — and has donated vehicles and other equipment to the department.

Glanz was asked if, in hindsight, he thought Bates should not have been involved in the operation.

"Yes, he should have been," Glanz said. "He was not involved in the undercover sting, he was there as a backup."

Glanz started his news conference by expressing condolences to Harris' family.

"We are sorry Eric was taken from you," Glanz said. He added, "That is the business we are in. Life and death."

Bates had reached advanced reserve status and was assigned to the sheriff's Violent Crimes Task Force.

In a videotape of the shooting, the shot is heard before Bates says, "I shot him. I'm sorry." Harris is heard screaming, "He shot me. Oh my God!" adding that he is having trouble breathing. Deputy Joseph Byars responds "(Expletive) your breath."

Glanz said Byars and another deputy have received death threats since the shooting. He said both have been reassigned — and the Violent Crimes Task Force put on hold pending review.

In a related development, the Tulsa World reporter and editor who reported the alleged records falsification Thursday left the newspaper Monday to join a local online news start-up.

Staff writer Dylan Goforth told Talking Points Memo that he, enterprise editor Ziva Branstetter and two other staffers had received offers several months ago to join the new venture, which has not yet launched. All left the paper Monday.

Executive editor Susan Ellerbach told USA TODAY that their departure was "purely coincidental" and in no way related to the allegations, based on anonymous sources, that sheriff's officials falsified Bates' records.

"I have no reason to doubt their sources," said Ellerbach, who has a list of the individuals. She would not identify or characterize the sources.

Ellerbach said she heard at the end of last week that four of her top journalists might be jumping ship. Three submitted two-week notices Sunday, and the fourth Monday. The start-up will be producing content in the Tulsa market. She accepted their resignations, effective Monday.

Amid the staffing bombshell, the newsroom received word that Branstetter and Cary Aspinwall, one of the departing reporters, had been Pulitzer Prize finalists for their coverage of a botched execution last year.