By Police1 Staff
TULSA, Okla. — A judge ruled Wednesday that the first-degree manslaughter case brought against a former Tulsa police officer will be removed from her record.
The Associated Press reports that District Judge William LaFortune made the ruling after ex-Tusla officer Betty Jo Shelby asked to have it expunged. Shelby was acquitted earlier this year in the fatal September 2016 shooting of 40-year-old Terence Crutcher.
The judge also ordered all documents involving Shelby’s case sealed and kept with the court. The case can still be accessed but only through a court order, and the documents can be destroyed after 10 years.
Shelby’s defense attorney Shannon McMurray told AP that aside from government and law enforcement, which would have access to the record since Shelby would likely disclose it on any job applications, agencies won’t be able to find the case when they conduct a background search on her.
Last year, Shelby encountered Crutcher when his vehicle was stopped in the middle of the street. She testified that Crutcher was on drugs, didn’t obey commands and appeared to be reaching inside his vehicle.
Shelby was reinstated to the force two days after her acquittal, but resigned in July. She later became a reserve deputy in another county.