A former police officer in Virginia, Wesley Shifflett, was acquitted of involuntary manslaughter but convicted of reckless handling of a firearm by a jury after fatally shooting a shoplifting suspect, Timothy McCree Johnson, outside a shopping mall in February 2023. Shifflett claimed self-defense, stating he feared Johnson was reaching for a weapon during a foot chase. Prosecutors criticized Shifflett’s decisions leading up to the shooting, including chasing Johnson into a wooded area at night without backup or a flashlight.
The bodycam video shown to jurors was inconclusive regarding whether Johnson reached his waistband, but it did capture Shifflett ordering Johnson to get on the ground before firing two shots. Shifflett was fired by the Fairfax County Police Chief for violating use-of-force policies, but the video’s ambiguity led to public debate regarding the shooting.
Prosecutors struggled to present their case against Shifflett, with a grand jury initially declining to indict him, prompting the Commonwealth’s Attorney to convene a special grand jury that indicted Shifflett on involuntary manslaughter and reckless handling of a firearm charges. The trial faced delays, including a lead prosecutor’s medical issue and concerns about a mistrial, before being completed.
Shifflett will be sentenced in February on the reckless discharge of a firearm charge, which is a felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison. The case highlights the complexities of police use of force and the challenges in holding officers accountable for misconduct.
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