Lawsuit against Alamance County sheriff, deputies alleges they shot mentally ill man lying on ground
The lawsuit centers on a deputy-involved shooting that left Warren Kent Davis dead on May 8, 2023. Davis' mother, Kathy Fujiwara, filed the wrongful death suit against Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson and multiple unnamed deputies last fall. They will be set for a pre-trial hearing in April, if the parties 'are unable to reach agreement on a discovery plan,' the pretrial hearing will take place, according to court documents.
Fujiwara alleges that deputies shot Davis, who was mentally ill and suffered from substance abuse issues, in the arm while he was wielding a knife at his girlfriend's home.
Davis' girlfriend had taken out a protective order against Davis some months prior, However, on May 8, the lawsuit alleges that she picked Davis up and brought him to her home. At some point, she called both 911 and Davis's twin brother to remove Davis from the home. Chuck Fujiwara was also called.
'Numerous' deputies, as well as Sheriff Terry Johnson, arrived at the home after they were called. Johnson knew Davis by name, calling him 'Kent,' and spoke with him. At some point, Davis was shot in the arm.
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The lawsuit alleges that 10 deputies surrounded Davis and he hid underneath a truck, lying prone on his stomach. Deputies then deployed a nonlethal flashbang.
'Immediately' after the deployment of the flashbang, 'several, if not all of the deputies, opened fire on Kent while he was lying prone on his stomach.'
The lawsuit alleges that the deputies were reacting to the sound of the flashbang, but all knew that Davis did not have a gun on him at the time.
'Kent was struck numerous times and killed by a lethal shot to his head while lying proneunder the truck,' according to the suit.
Fujiwara claims that the Alamance County Sheriff's Office lied about the nature of the event, quoting a contemporaneous media release where they state that a deputy offered Davis a cigarette, shot him after he 'lunged' with a knife and then after a second 'lunge' fatally shot him. She says they used various types of guns including AR-style rifles to shoot Davis while he hid on the ground.
Deputies at the scene were wearing body-worn cameras, and the footage has not been publicly shared. The lawsuit states that the camera footage contradicts the narrative that the sheriff's office released to the public and that the SBI did not investigate the shooting, as is standard procedure in officer or deputy involved shootings.
The lawsuit goes on to state that the sheriff's office failed to train the deputies properly, accusing them of 'failing to de-escalate and stand down until Sheriff Johnson had concluded his attempts to get Kent to surrender' and 'subjecting Kent to unnecessary, extreme, excessive, and deadly force in attempting to effectuate his detainment.'
Fujiwara also states that 'the use of deadly force was malicious, reckless, and deliberately indifferent to Kent's federally protected rights.'
The lawsuit states that Fujiwara, as the plaintiff, is 'entitled to recover compensatory, consequential, and punitive damages from Defendants, in an amount determined by the trier of fact,' for both Davis's wrongful death and the emotional distress inflicted upon her.
The lawsuit is seeking damages and a trial by jury.
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