Utica PD fatal shooting: What body camera footage of David Litts' death shows
Edited video footage from police body-worn cameras and 911 dispatch audio were released Wednesday detailing the shooting of 61-year-old David Litts.
Litts, who had called 911 on Sept. 12 threatening suicide, was shot by Utica police around 8 p.m. outside his home at 1601 Neilson St. that night. Authorities said Litts advanced toward an officer with a knife and police opened fire in response.
On Wednesday, Utica police released a 19-minute video on the department's Facebook page including edited video clips and audio with an introduction and narration by Utica police Lt. Ashley Berger.
Police have also provided the unedited footage from the body-worn cameras to the Observer-Dispatch and we will review that video in coming days.
What information Utica police released
The footage, which Berger notes has not been assembled in chronological order, includes an audio clip of the 911 call Litts made at 7:49 p.m.
In the 911 call, Litts says he is suicidal and is in possession of various weapons. He is repeatedly asked to walk outside and responds he will shoot someone if he does.
"Do you have a .22?" the dispatcher asks.
"I have a .22," Litts responds, but later says he says he has shotgun, and then later says he has an M16 rifle.
Body-worn camera footage from multiple officers at the scene, including Sgt. Tyler Mowers and Officer Bryan Gil, who police identify as the two officers who fired at Litts, along with Sgt. Charles Goldstein and Officer Leby Gonzalez, portrays the moments leading up to and following the shooting.
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What Utica Police body camera footage shows
In the introduction, Berger says clips from officers' body-worn camera footage have been edited together "to demonstrate the important facets of the event."
In the footage, police are seen stationed several houses down from Litts' home at 8 p.m., according to the video timestamp. Voices Berger identifies as those of police officers are heard yelling at Litts to drop a knife he is carrying.
Berger later identifies Officer Jessica Dodge, a crisis negotiator, in the video. She is heard attempting to speak with Litts at 8:07 p.m. "David," she's heard saying, "can you put the knife down so we can talk?"
A minute later, Goldstein requests a "less-lethal" shotgun, which Berger explains uses bean bag rounds. Utica police Sgt. Michael Curley said Wednesday less-lethal weapons outside of Tasers are typically only carried in supervisors' vehicles.
One minute after that, five gunshots are heard on the video.
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In two separate clips, Litts is seen running with a knife, heading at an angle behind a police car before being shot as he emerges from behind the car.
In the video footage following the shooting, people can be heard shouting at police, with an officer in one clip instructing them to back away. In another clip, Litts is seen being handcuffed after being shot, then CPR is administered.
Litts was pronounced dead from his injuries at St. Elizabeth campus of Mohawk Valley Health Systems.
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Officers who shot David Litts on administrative leave
Litts' death is being investigated by the Utica Police Department and the New York State Attorney General's Office.
On Wednesday, Curley said releasing the edited video was "an effort by the city and Utica Police Department to be transparent."
"Providing the information that we're legally allowed to provide is in everyone's best interest," he said.
Curley said no other weapons besides the knife Litts was carrying were recovered from the home, and Mowers and Gil remain on paid administrative leave since the shooting and have been offered services including counseling.
H. Rose Schneider covers public safety, breaking and trending news for the Observer-Dispatch in Utica. Email Rose at hschneider@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Observer-Dispatch: Utica police department video shows fatal shooting of David Litts
