Police Officer Roy Oliver Charged With Murder For Killing 15-Year Old Jordan Edwards

May 6

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Jordan Edwards

On April 29, 2017, 15-year old Jordan Edwards was leaving a party with two of his older brothers.  He was in the passenger seat of a vehicle when shot in the head by Balch Springs, Texas patrol officer Roy Oliver.

The Balch Springs Police Chief was quick coming forth with the officer’s side of the story.  It was reported that Officer Roy Oliver was called to investigate reports of underage drinking at a house party.  When they arrived, they heard what they believed were gunshots.  A car of teenagers leaving the party was driving toward the police in reverse in an “aggressive manner.”  Oliver opened fire, striking Jordan Edwards in the head.   Jordan died at a hospital.

Roy Oliver was placed on administrative duty while the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department and the Dallas County District Attorney’ Office began investigating the shooting.  The Balch Springs Police Department began an internal investigation.

The following Tuesday, Roy Oliver was fired on the basis that he violated department policies. Police Chief Jonathan Haber stated that he rushed to get information out to the public, but since watched two body cam videos showing that the teens were driving away from the officers when Oliver fired.

The Dallas County Medical Examiner’s office said that Jordan was killed by a rifle wound to the head.

On Tuesday, May 2, 2017, Oliver was fired.

Roy Oliver

On Friday, May 5, 2017, Roy Oliver was charged with murder.  A warrant was issued for his arrest.  His bond was set at $300,000.  Oliver turned himself in at the Parker County Jail in Weatherford, about 95 miles west of Dallas, and posted bond.

Dallas County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Melina Urbina stated:

“The warrant was issued due to evidence that suggested Mr. Oliver intended to cause serious bodily injury and commit an act clearly dangerous to human life that caused the death of an individual. The warrant gives any peace officer the authority to arrest Roy Oliver for the crime of murder. Mr. Oliver can also turn himself into any peace officer if he so chooses.”

Jordan’s funeral is tomorrow.  Our condolences to his family and friends.

 

Posted on 05/06/2017, in Black lives matter, Cases, Cops Gone Wild, Jordan Edwards and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. 19 Comments.

  1. omtatjuan3 | 05/06/2017 at 9:11 am

    And the police chief had to eat crow after seeing the body cam video…

    Liked by 3 people

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    • Xena | 05/06/2017 at 4:48 pm

      Hey Juan!! Yes, he did. I’m at a point where I don’t blog about incidents until or unless the killer has been charged. That’s because of the varying stories.

      Liked by 3 people

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  2. Bill Taylor | 05/06/2017 at 10:45 am

    every officer that filed the reports saying the car was coming at the shooter should be fired and arrested……..they filed a FALSE report and did so with clear INTENT.

    Liked by 4 people

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  5. jilldennison | 05/06/2017 at 9:20 pm

    These are becoming all too common … it is time they STOP! I was encouraged that at least Roy Oliver was terminated. The two who murdered Alton Sterling have been on PAID leave all this time. Too many … and with a racist Attorney General, likely to be more. 😥

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Xena | 05/07/2017 at 6:35 pm

      Jill,
      Thanks so much for your comment. Let’s keep hope that the killings with stop. Truly, if the municipalities and states did the right thing to hold officers who use excessive force accountable, citizens would not need the involvement of the DOJ. What I would like to keep an eye on are those families who file civil lawsuits in federal courts alleging wrongful death or use of excessive force to see how the federal judges decide, or if they are going to fall in line with the bigoted attitude of Sessions.

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      • jilldennison | 05/07/2017 at 10:07 pm

        You make two excellent points: 1) that the states and municipalities need to step up to the plate and do the right thing, and that may happen. I believe the State of Louisiana is planning to investigate Alton Sterling’s murder, since the DOJ closed the case without bringing charges. And 2) keeping an eye on the civil suits that have been brought in similar cases … that would be interesting, and we can hope they do the right thing. Good post!

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  6. Gronda Morin | 05/07/2017 at 4:15 pm

    Dear Xena,

    It is like we have the police story line down pat. It is always the victim’s fault. The victim was doing something where the police officer / officers felt that they were in imminent danger. The victim was guilty of something untoward like underage drinking, taking drugs, having commuted a crime like a theft.

    If it were not for the body cam videos, all that BS would have been the story. NOW AT LEAST, THERE IS A CHANCE FOR JUSTICE BUT WITHOUT THE SUPPORT OF THE CURRENT US AG JEFF SESSIONS.

    Hugs, Gronda

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Xena | 05/07/2017 at 6:27 pm

      Gronda,
      You said it! Earlier today, I was watching MCNBC who had on a panel talking about this case. The panel include activist Deray who said that justice would be that no one was killed — what is needed is accountability.

      The situation with Jordan has similarities with the situation involving Jeremy Mardis. Like Jordan, he was a passenger. The officers fired at the side of the car and at trial, it was testified that cars do not run sideways.

      Liked by 1 person

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  7. yahtzeebutterfly | 05/07/2017 at 6:08 pm

    My thoughts and prayers are with Jordan’s family.

    “Remember his name: Vigil for Jordan Edwards” (May 4, 2017)

    Liked by 1 person

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  8. Xena | 05/07/2017 at 7:12 pm

    Jordan Edwards laid to rest.

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  9. chuquestaquenumber1 | 05/08/2017 at 7:46 pm

    I must say I am surprised that an investigation was completed quickly and and arrest and charges also happened quickly. When a killing is this blatant this what’s supposed to happen. While quick investigations,arrests and charges quickly happen to Black cops(Joseph Walker,Lowell Houser,Laroyce Tonkin,Norris Greenhouse and Derrick Stafford),with White cops it’s the opposite.

    Unfortunately we are also witnessing the beginning of the sympathy for the white killer that kills a Black person. We saw this with George Zimmerman,James Jackson now we see it with Roy Oliver.

    http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/jordan-edwards-accused-shooter-served-iraq-article-1.3133449

    Liked by 1 person

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  10. mindyme62 | 05/09/2017 at 2:41 pm

    I do think public opinion is swaying in favor of at least questioning these shootings, for many people. I see fewer comments these days suggesting the officer is always in the right.

    Even though the chief claims he put out information quickly validating his officer’s action “in the interest of transparency’, he was actually being far less than transparent. I hope he’s learned a lesson with this.

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Xena | 05/09/2017 at 4:07 pm

      Mindyme,
      It certainly does not help when police chiefs or their spokespersons give one-side of the story and do so without seeing video. The same happened when Slager killed Walter Scott. It causes too much controversy and having to retract does not restore public trust. People will always repeat the first report and disregard the correction.

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  11. Xena | 05/11/2017 at 5:45 pm

    “We want to see a genuine effort, with all resources available, to prosecute not only the officer that has been named, Roy Oliver, but every officer involved in wrongdoing, in the cover up, and the harassment of Jordan Edwards’ brothers — and the injustice on that evening,” said Lee Merritt, an attorney representing the family.

    Source: DOJ Will Investigate Ex-Officer’s Fatal Shooting of Texas Teen: Report | NBC4 Washington http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/national-international/Parents-of-Jordan-Edwards-Meet-with-Dallas-County-DA-421984394.html#ixzz4goRay2uA

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