By Police1 Staff
OPELIKA, Ala. — Police released footage of a 2014 shooting of a man who failed to show his hands while exiting his vehicle after a traffic accident.
Officer Phillip Hancock responded to an erratic driver call on March 6, 2014 and discovered Michael Davidson had swiped the back of a tractor-trailer, WRBL reported. Both drivers pulled over to the shoulder to exchange information.
Davidson exited his vehicle with his black wallet in his hand, leading Hancock to believe it was a gun, WTVM reported. Hancock told Davidson to show his hands twice before firing one shot into the ground and another that wounded Davidson.
Two federal courts determined that there was no wrongdoing on either defendants. Judges ruled after reviewing the video evidence, the use of force was reasonable. Davidson’s attorney Brian Mosholder told WRBL he will speak with Davidson to see if they will take their appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The judges said the officer made a “disastrous mistake” but “the position of Davidson’s wallet and hands the moment before the shooting mean that mistake did not violate Davidson’s constitutional rights.”
Mosholder told WRBL that Davidson is recovering in Texas with his mother.