By Ryan Seals
News & Record
ARCHDALE, N.C. — Police radio recordings from the fatal shooting of a UNC-Chapel Hill student along Interstate 85 indicate the student was getting back in his SUV seconds before an officer shot him.
But neither the recordings released nor a 911 call released earlier this week reveal whether Courtland Smith, 21, had a handgun or threatened himself, officers or passing motorists.
Smith called Guilford Metro 911. He told a dispatcher that he was suicidal, armed with a 9mm pistol and was driving his Toyota 4Runner drunk at speeds up to 110 miles per hour. He repeatedly refused requests by the dispatcher to pull over.
As he drove south, Greensboro dispatchers relayed that information to Archdale police dispatchers as Smith entered their jurisdiction.
Smith’s SUV was stopped along the off-ramp at Exit 108 on I-85.
An Archdale police officer told dispatchers that he was stopped with the vehicle with out-of-state tags.
“Stay in the car! Stay in the car!” two officers can be heard yelling.
“Archdale: Subject is getting back into his vehicle, stand by,” one of the officers said.
“Subject down! Subject down!,” an officer said seconds later, followed by the second officer saying, “Shots fired. Shots fired.”
The officers immediately called for an ambulance, supervisors and other authorities to come to the site.
About 35 seconds elapsed between the time officers said they had Smith’s vehicle stopped and the report of shots fired.
Smith died after he was taken to High Point Regional Medical Center.
Radio communications don’t give an explanation of what happened, other than Smith had been shot. Police said the shots were fired by Officer Jeremy Flinchum, 29.
Archdale Police Chief Darrell Gibbs said that both patrol cruisers were equipped with dashboard cameras.
Video of the shooting remains sealed by court order as part of an SBI investigation.
Gibbs said he was unsure whether a pistol was recovered from Smith’s SUV. He declined further comment, citing the ongoing investigation.
It’s unclear when or if the videotape will be released to the public.
Flinchum and the other officer at the site of the shooting remain on paid administrative leave.
The result of the SBI investigation will be turned over to the Randolph County District Attorney’s office.
Prosecutors will decide whether the shooting was justified or criminal charges are warranted.
In the 911 tape, Smith said he was driving drunk and wanted someone who could give him a lift.
“I am trying to kill myself on I-40... that’s all I need,” Smith told the dispatcher in a slurred voice.
He later said he had a 9mm pistol in his back pocket and that he had “e-mailed everything anyone needed to know” to his parents.
A junior majoring in biology, Smith was president of the UNC-CH chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
A statement issued Wednesday by DKE said members were “saddened and surprised” at the 911 call.
The statement said Smith left a party at the fraternity at 12:30 a.m. Sunday, and “he seemed to be fine.”
His roommates later reported they saw him at 2 a.m. and he seemed normal.
About 200 mourners attended a memorial for Smith on the UNC-CH campus Wednesday evening. His funeral is today in his hometown of Houston.
Copyright 2009 News & Record