The State Attorney’s Office announced Friday that former Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Deputy Eddie Duran has been charged with manslaughter in the May 3 shooting death of Senior Airman Roger Fortson.
- The State Attorney’s Office has charged Duran with one count of manslaughter with a firearm. This charge is a first-degree felony punishable by a maximum sentence of up to 30 years in state prison. A warrant for Duran’s arrest will be issued today, according to the State Attorney’s Office.
The charges come more than three months after the incident at Fortson’s apartment complex. Body camera footage showed Fortson holding a firearm when he opened the door, but the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office’s internal investigation found that Fortson did not point the gun at Duran or physically resist.
Sheriff Eric Aden terminated Duran following an internal investigation, stating, “The objective facts do not support the use of deadly force as an appropriate response to Mr. Fortson’s actions.”
Last week, the Fortson family, represented by civil rights attorney Ben Crump, held a press conference demanding justice and questioning the delay in charges.
- “We came here for one reason and one reason only, Okaloosa County, and that is to get justice for Roger Fortson,” Crump said. “How long, Okaloosa State Attorney, how long? You got the video. What more do you need?”
Meka Fortson, the airman’s mother, spoke about her son’s service and final moments. “My child rescued people within a split second. Look how long it’s taking America to rescue him,” she said.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement completed its investigation and submitted findings to the State Attorney’s Office in July, according to Crump.
In a statement on Friday afternoon, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office said they stand by their decision to terminate Duran as a result of the administrative internal affairs investigation.
- “The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO) has been fully accountable and transparent in its compliance with statutory requirements, providing numerous public statements, making accessible the available body-worn camera footage and other related records, meeting with Mr. Forston’s family and legal counsel, and communicating openly with the U.S. Air Force and our community at-large,” wrote the department in a statement.
The Sheriff’s Office concluded by saying, “we continue to wish Mr. Fortson’s family comfort and peace, as the former deputy’s criminal case proceeds.”
