The inexperienced volunteer deputy who fatally shot an unarmed Black man in Oklahoma last April was convicted of second-degree manslaughter on Wednesday.
Robert Bates, 74, who was a volunteer reserve deputy for the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office, claimed he meant to use his Taser but “inadvertently” fired his gun when he killed Eric Courtney Harris.
Harris was the subject of a sting operation when he ran from police. Officers caught up to Harris, tackled him and were holding him on the ground when Bates rushed out of his car, jumped on top of Harris and shot him in the back.
