ADVISORY: The body cam footage at the end of this article contains graphic language, firearm use, and images of traumatic wounds.
CASPER, Wyo — Body camera footage of a fatal encounter between Casper police and a suspect earlier this month was released Monday. Casper resident and Army veteran Trae Stewart Spurlock, 26, died after police responded to a disturbance call at an apartment complex in east Casper on the night of June 6.
The video shows that Spurlock was sitting on the outside balcony of the apartment when officers arrived, and that a rifle was next to him. Spurlock remains in the threshold while speaking to officers. After being told he would be arrested for domestic assault, Spurlock “opened the door and turned rapidly back towards the rifle,” as summarized in text at the end of the video.
“[The video] will also show the earnest efforts of involved police officers to dissuade the suspect from his chosen path,” Casper Police Chief Keith McPheeters said in a video explaining the early release of the footage, which is usual given the ongoing investigation by the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigations.
McPheeters said the body camera footage was released to give the public “a better understanding of the events leading up to the shooting.”
At the beginning of the filmed encounter with police, Spurlock says, “You’re trespassing so I could shoot you,” and later says, “I’m not going to jail tonight, I hope you know that…That’s why that f—ing rifle’s there.”
In the introductory statement, McPheeters said that preliminary autopsy findings disseminated in the media had led to public conjecture and second-guessing of the officers. Police spokesperson Amber Freestone told Oil City News that the report had been inadvertently sent to a media member who hadn’t received the coroner’s office release identifying the suspect and had requested it. That preliminary report led to reporting that the suspect had been shot nine times.
The officer fired seven times and Spurlock was struck six times, according to text included at the end of the body cam video. As Spurlock drops back into the darkness on the balcony, the officers deploys a Taser, but it is unclear if it was effective. Gunfire rings out immediately after. The video shows the officers immediately rendering first aid and encouraging Spurlock to “hang on.” EMS arrives five minutes after the shooting.
McPheeters said that Spurlock’s family and DCI officials had been consulted before the video’s release. He added that the video is the only evidence CPD has access to while the DCI investigation is underway.
Based on the footage, McPheeters said “It is my opinion… that the actions of my officers were in line with their training, in compliance the policies of the Casper Police Department, and in accordance with the Constitution.”
The video’s narrative says that police responded to the apartments on the 5000 block of Pay It Forward Drive around 9:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 6. Spurlock’s girlfriend had reported that he shoved to the ground. Officers accompanied her into the apartment while she collected her belongings and found Spurlock outside of the balcony. They repeatedly ask him to step inside away from the rifle but he remains in the threshold for the majority of the encounter.
Spurlock admits to shoving the woman in the video. The officer says, “It is technically a domestic assault, so you understand that we have to do our jobs… so I’m trying to handle this as peacefully as possible.”
In the recorded statement, McPheeters said some in the public had said that the officers should have left the area.
“That strategy would not have addressed the unanswered question as to what the intentions of the suspect were while armed and on the upper floor balcony of a busy apartment complex,” McPheeters said. It would also have been “inconsistent with the law regarding domestic violence investigations,” he added.
McPheeters said he stood by the decision made by the officers “on the scene, in the face of a resolute suspect who has openly discussed ‘death by cop’ and his lack of fear of getting into a firefight.”
Spurlock had just turned 26 and was a veteran of the 82nd Airborne Division of the U.S. Army, joining in 2016 according to his mother Brenda. He also reportedly suffered from PTSD and traumatic brain injuries and retired medically from service. He was in the process of getting accredited to drive trucks on military bases, He was the father of three, the oldest being five, and was totally dedicated to his kids, Brenda said.
“The men and women of the Casper police department are sensitive to the challenges and difficulties faced by the combat veterans of our nation. Indeed many combat veterans are employed in service to our community at your police department,” the video states.
