Fiancee of man killed by police says he was shot in the back
(AP) — A Tennessee woman says her fiance was shot in the back by an officer as he was surrendering a rifle to her during a confrontation with police — and then again in the chest as he lay dying — contradicting the assertion by investigators that he was killed as the two struggled over the weapon.
Debra Nesbit described the March 23 encounter to The Associated Press, providing a detailed account of the events leading up to the shooting of Alexio Allen, 30.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation held a news conference the day after the shooting describing what investigators say happened when a Memphis police officer opened fire on Allen.
A report on the shooting is not being released because the investigation is ongoing, Memphis police spokesman Louis Brownlee said Wednesday.
An autopsy is being performed, and the investigation's findings will be turned over to the district attorney once it is finished.
Police returned a second time after an unidentified woman called an ambulance and said Allen was hallucinating.
With his back to the officers as he faced Nesbit, Allen handed her the rifle as one officer fired two shots toward his back from just a few feet away, Nesbit said.