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LAKELAND, Fla. — Video released in the fatal shooting of an alleged shoplifter at a Florida military surplus store shows Lakeland city Commissioner Michael Dunn fire the shot that killed the man.
Dunn, a vocal supporter of gun rights, is a co-owner of Vets Army Navy Surplus, located at 819 N. Florida Ave. in Lakeland. According to the Tampa Bay Times, Dunn was not arrested following the Oct. 3 shooting, which police officials have labeled a “death-justifiable homicide investigation.”
Surveillance video released Monday by police officials shows Dunn, 47, confronting Christobal Lopez, 50, of Wauchula, about a $16 hatchet Dunn said he saw Lopez conceal and try to leave with. Dunn holds a handgun in his right hand and, as both men move into the camera frame, he pushes Lopez with his left.
As Lopez moves toward the door, Dunn tries to grab Lopez’s shoulder, but instead ends up with a fistful of the man’s shirt. Lopez raises his left arm, trying to break free.
Dunn then appears to fire at least one bullet into Lopez’s body. The alleged shoplifter falls to the ground just outside the door. An object which appears to be the hatchet is still in his right hand.
The mortally wounded man moves for a few seconds, seemingly trying to get up. Lopez then goes still, as Dunn keeps his gun trained on him.
The video continues for another three minutes, during which Dunn is seen moving in and out of the frame, the Times reported. No one tries to see if Lopez, who is face-down on the sidewalk, is alive or render first aid.
Regarding the last sentence, the hatchet might still have been in his hand. IDK because I was unable to view the video on my computer.
Dunn’s attorney, Rusty Franklin, told reporters following the shooting that his client was justified because Lopez had a hatchet in hand during their scuffle, the Times reported.
Tim Hessinger, a Tampa defense attorney and former state prosecutor, told the Times after viewing the video, however, that it does not appear to show Dunn in fear for his life when he fires at Lopez, who was struggling to get away.
“This is a very difficult case to defend,” Hessinger told the newspaper.
Lopez’s family is trying to make sense of why he was killed. His obituary stated that Lopez, who lived most of his life in Hardee County, worked as an agricultural laborer.
His sister, Veronica Lopez, told the Times following the shooting that her brother, who had a non-violent criminal history that included drug and shoplifting charges, did not deserve his fate.
“He was not a violent person,” Veronica Lopez said. “My brother didn’t need to be killed like some animal.”
Except that he was stealing an ax for
some reason. Do agricultural workers in Tampa have to provide their own axes for their jobs?
Dunn in July held a rally at his store to counter a March for our Lives rally held nearby, according to the Times. The March for our Lives movement was formed by students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where 17 students and faculty were gunned down on Valentine’s Day.
Surviving students have become prominent activists for better gun control.