By Police1 Staff
DENTON, Texas — Recently released body cam footage shows a Texas officer fatally shooting a man who charged and swung a knife at him.
The Denton-Record Chronicle reports that the video was released Friday after a Denton County grand jury cleared Officer John Landolfo in the fatal February shooting. The Denton Police Department also released additional details of the moments that led up to the shooting.
On Feb. 19, Landolfo and his trainee, Officer Je’Ni Nelson, were in their patrol vehicle filling out a report from a previous call when a man approached the back of their vehicle and began yelling at them. When the officers went to check on him, the man, identified as 45-year-old Lawrence Shaw, threatened the officers with a knife.
Shaw later walked away toward a clearing in a wooded area as the officers followed, concerned that the man may be a danger to others. Both officers can be heard on video asking Shaw to stop and put the knife down.
After briefly disappearing in a thickly wooded area, Shaw reappeared and charged at Landolfo, erratically swinging the knife at the officer. Landolfo used his TASER on Shaw, who went down briefly before getting back up.
Landolfo used his TASER a second time, but Shaw continued to walk toward the officer while swinging the knife at him. The officer then fired two rounds at Shaw, killing him.
The officers were placed on administrative leave, per policy, in the first few days following the shooting. Police spokesman said Landolfo is back on the street as a patrol officer.
On May 3, the grand jury cleared the officer based on the evidence from the investigation.