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Wednesday, December 14, 2016
News Lunch Break (12/14/16): Teenager dead after SWAT raid in northwest Charlotte, family disputes CMPD version of events
Posted By Ryan Pitkin on Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 11:48 AM
CMPD investigators say a young man who died during a raid by SWAT in northwest Charlotte yesterday committed suicide, but his mother and her neighbors are raising questions about the incident.
According to a police statement, the CMPD's Violent Criminal Apprehension Team had set up surveillance on 18-year-old Timothy Davis outside of his home in Sparrow Valley Drive yesterday morning. He was wanted on warrants for two counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, attempted armed robbery and conspiracy to commit armed robbery.
Police knocked on the door at around 7:20 a.m. and saw Davis peak out of a window. They then tried to reach Davis through social media, text messages and a loudspeaker, unsuccessfully.
The VCAT team then requested a SWAT team, which parked its armored vehicle in front of the home at about 10 a.m. The team continued unsuccessfully to try to communicate with Davis before deploying a robot, followed by a canine, into the home.
A SWAT entry team eventually entered the home and found Davis dead of what they say appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a room upstairs. The CMPD's Homicide Unit investigated the scene, as is standard protocol, and it appears the investigation was over as of last night, as the family was allowed back into the home.
Family members, neighbors and anti-police-violence activists held a vigil for Davis outside of his home last night. Davis's mother said she doesn't believe the CMPD's version of events, and said that her son would never have taken his own life. Neighbors have said they didn't hear a gunshot and agree with his mother.
Some community members reportedly cleared up an original theory that Davis may have been shot through a window, where an apparent bullet hole could be seen, by saying that the hole was caused by a BB gun previous to yesterday's incident.
In Facebook Live video taken after last night's vigil, Charlotte activist Ashley Williams toured Davis's home and took footage of the spot where police say they found Davis dead. Activists have demanded that CMPD release any body camera footage related to yesterday's SWAT raid.
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