Tulsa police officer charged with manslaughter

Reserve Deputy Robert Bates (pictured above), 73, fatally shot Eric Harris, 44, an African-American, on 2 April. Bates thought he was using a Taser instead of his gun, the Tulsa sheriff’s office said of the incident seen in a video released over the weekend.

No attorney for Bates was listed on the charge sheet. Legal experts said second-degree manslaughter in Oklahoma can bring between two and four years in prison.

In the video, a man Oklahoma authorities identified as Bates is heard saying: “Oh, I shot him. I’m sorry.”

Police were pursuing Harris on suspicion of trying to sell a gun illegally to an undercover officer in a police sting. He fled the scene and was being chased.

As a Tulsa County deputy subdues the suspect, a voice identified as Bates says: “Taser, Taser.” A gunshot is then heard.

The suspect is heard screaming, “He shot me. Oh, my God.”

A deputy replies, telling Harris to shut up.

Harris (pictured above), who said in the video he was having trouble breathing, later died at a Tulsa hospital.

The suspect’s family requested the video, which was recorded during the arrest using sunglass cameras.

“This is something that either [Bates] didn’t just really think about, or he just decided that he wanted to shoot and he would worry about it later.” said Harris’s brother, Eric Harris.

“If he had as much training as he supposedly had, he would definitely know a 357 from a taser,” he added.

The Tulsa County Sheriff’s Department said the shooting was an accident.