Bodycam footage showing the moment a man who was armed with two knives was fatally shot by a Knoxville police officer at a Fountain City gas station was released on Wednesday.
William Charles McBride Jr., 41, was pronounced dead at a Knoxville hospital on April 17 after he was shot at the Exxon gas station in the 5300 block of North Broadway. Officer Seth Beeler arrived alone at the scene around 5:30 p.m. after a report of a man who was acting erratically and potentially aggressive.
The footage shared Wednesday by the Knoxville Police Department begins when Beeler exits his cruiser at 5:28:09 p.m. and is told by a witness in the parking lot that there is a man armed with a knife inside the convenience store.
McBride is seen on the footage inside the store near the door. Beeler begins telling him to come out of the store and get down on the ground when McBride runs from the store with knives in both hands.
Beeler fires two shots. McBride fell to the ground after being struck at least one time. The timestamp on the video shows the shooting occurred at approximately 5:28:30. Beeler places McBride in handcuffs roughly three minutes later. The footage ends at 5:32 p.m.
A KPD spokesperson said that responding officers started rendering aid to McBride at around 5:33 p.m. and medical personnel arrived at the scene approximately one minute later.
The shooting remains under investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. An internal administrative investigation by KPD’s Office of Professional Standards is also underway. Beeler remains on administrative leave.
