A San Antonio police officer who opened fire on an unarmed teenager eating a hamburger in a McDonald’s parking lot has been fired, while the 17-year-old victim remained hospitalized in stable condition Friday.
Officer James Brennand responded to a disturbance call at the McDonald’s on Oct. 2, police said. But Brennand was quickly distracted by the parked car the teen, Erik Cantu, was sitting in. He claimed that the car evaded him the day before during an attempted traffic stop.
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Brennand walked up to the car, opened the driver’s door and ordered Cantu to get out, body-camera video shows. Cantu was holding a burger in his hand.
The teenager put the car in reverse. Brennand backed away and then fired multiple shots into the vehicle. As Cantu put the car in drive and left the McDonald’s, Brennand fired more shots at the vehicle.
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Multiple bullets struck Cantu, who was found about a block away, cops said. A 17-year-old girl riding in the passenger seat was not physically harmed.
“There is nothing I can say in defense of that officer’s actions that night,” San Antonio Police Chief William McManus told WOAI-TV. “I think what happened, initially, there was some contact made, but that did not justify the shooting.”
Cantu was initially charged with resisting arrest and injuring a police officer, but those charges were dropped.
“The facts and evidence we have received so far led us to reject the charges against Erik Cantu for further investigation,” Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales said.
Because Brennand was a probationary officer who had been on the force for seven months, he was fired immediately.
The shooting remains under investigation.
With News Wire Services
