Family disputes police version of fatal shooting of Marion man

MARION, Ind. -- Derick Morgan's family said the 56-year-old Marion man showed no signs of depression, suicidal thoughts or intoxication before he grabbed a large knife and started stabbing himself in the chest and slashing his throat Sunday afternoon.




Then Morgan walked out to his family's van parked outside their house at 36^th and South Washington Streets and told his mother and common-law wife he loved them.

"From then on he opened up his jacket and pulled out my Thanksgiving butcher knife and went to work," said Morgan's mother, Daphne Royal.




"Went to work how?" FOX59/CBS4's Russ McQuaid asked.




"On his neck," said Royal. "And then he said, 'Bye.'"




That suicide attempt began a 20-minute-or-so struggle involving Morgan's longtime companion and a Marion police officer in an attempt to save the man's life that came to a fatal end when a Grant County Sheriff's deputy arrived on the scene.




"The officer was talking him down and Derick got on his knees and he said, 'Drop the knife,' and he dropped the knife," said Royal who watched the confrontation from inside the van. "And I heard the officer kick it away because you could hear it going across the concrete and all hell broke loose from there on."




Micki Fort, mother of Morgan's six children, tried unsuccessfully to wrestle the knife from her partner's hand.




That's why she called for Marion police.




"Th officer has his gun drawn and he says, 'Mr. Morgan, get down. Get down.' He gets on his knees. He has the knife in his hand but he's up like this," Fort said. "The officer tells him to drop his weapon. He drops it. The officer comes over and he kicks the knife about here. The knife was about there."




Fort pointed to a spot on the pavement about 30 feet away.




"I don't believe Derik was saying anything. He was kind of mumbling but I don't think he was saying any clear words but the officer was just telling him to calm down, 'Its okay, Mr. Morgan,' told him to get down on the ground, drop the knife, then he told him to stand up, but when he stood up I clearly believe Derick was disoriented from all the blood that was coming from his neck," Fort said. "You can clearly tell there's something wrong. So he stands up and he's disoriented. So he's wobbling. He's kind of wobbling forward but he still has hands like this. The man, the police officer, never tried to force anything. He never was aggressive."




While the patrolman, from a distance of approximately 20 feet, continued to counsel Morgan through his mental health crisis, he was joined by other Marion police officers and a Grant County Sheriff's deputy responding to an incident well within the city limits.




"Soon as (the deputy) opened up his door, he was already with gun in hand, an AR 15, and he lets off two rounds," said Fort. "Derick still has his hands up and he's running like this and he gets hit. He spins around and he falls right here."




During the initial investigation Sunday afternoon, on the ground next to the sheriff's deputy's car were four evidence markers, typically placed where shell casings are found.




A Marion police officer's car, situated between the deputy and Morgan, showed evidence of a bullet hole through its back window.




Another blue car, where Morgan was standing, also bore the mark of a fired bullet.




Where Morgan collapsed was several feet away from both the Marion officer and the discarded knife.




Indiana State Police, the lead investigative agency on the shooting, noted in a media release issued Sunday night that "Mr. Morgan charged at the Marion Police officer. The deputy subsequently discharged his duty weapon, striking Mr. Morgan at least once."




Fort said Morgan was shot in his lower back.




"If (the Marion police officer) believed Derick was charging him and he knew Derick didn't have a knife, if he believed that Derick was charging him, then he would've shot, but he didn't. He didn't," said Fort. "But (the deputy), who knew nothing about what was going on, he never got out and assessed anything, he never got out and asked anything, he got out and fired his AR 15, no questions asked. No hesitation. He had no regard for his life. He had no regard for anything, and (Morgan's) back was turned, so how did you know he had anything in his hand?"




Grant County Sheriff Del Garcia declined comment, citing the ongoing ISP investigation.








Garcia said he might consider commenting on his department's training for deputies when it comes to encountering a person in the midst of a mental health crisis.




The sheriff's office declined to identify the deputy involved in the shooting, deferring to the ISP investigation.




Fort said she is left stunned with unanswered questions about her partner's killing.




"Why was he shot? He died from the bullet wound. He didn't die from the self-inflicted wound. He died from the bullet wound. When his momma was in the car she yelled out, 'Please, don't shoot my baby. Taze him.'"




Royal has her own questions for the deputy involved.




"What the heck was that sheriff's motive and why did he do that?" she asked. "Please do what you were taught. Do it the way you were taught and things might come out better for a lot of families."



via: https://fox59.com/news/family-disputes-police-version-of-fatal-shooting-of-marion-man/