A rookie cop in San Antonio, Texas, is out of a job after body cam video shows him opening fire within seconds of approaching a teen seated in his car and eating McDonald’s with a friend.
According to reporting by My San Antonio, the rookie officer, James Brennand, was at a local McDonald’s when he observed "a maroon vehicle that evaded from him the night prior." In the incident report, Brennand says when he walked up to the car to speak with the driver, identified by KSAT-12 as 17-year-old Erik Cantu, he was struck by the car, so he opened fire. But the raw body cam video tells a different story.
The video footage shows that Brennand opened the car door to find a surprised Cantu eating a hamburger. Brennand told the teen, “Get out of the car!” and when Cantu began to ask why, the rookie cop took a step back and opened fire. As Cantu pulled away, Brennand is heard radioing, “Shots fired, shots fired!”
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The car can be seen rolling backward when the teen opened the door, but it's unclear if he shifted gears or if the car simply slipped backward when he took his foot off the brake.
San Antonio Current reports that Brennand is a probationary officer with just seven months on the job (and apparently a lightning-fast and careless trigger finger).
The following video contains gun violence that may be triggering for some viewers.
The teen and his female passenger (who was not injured) were later found down the road. Cantu was taken to the hospital, where he was rushed into surgery. As of Friday, NBC News reports, his condition remains unknown.
The police report states that Brennand performed CPR on Cantu until emergency services arrived.
Those who know Cantu are surprised by his alleged wrongdoing. About Cantu, Christopher Montalvo, who worked with the victim, tells KSAT, “Good laughs, just normal human being stuff. Nothing really serious. I never got a bad vibe from (Cantu). … He was always a really good guy to me, and he always respected me. Every time I told him to do something, he always did it, and he worked hard.”
Cantu is charged with evading detention and assault on an officer, KSAT reports.
Brennand is off the force.
Chief William McManus tells NBC News, “The former Officer’s actions are indefensible and do not align with our training, tactics and procedures. [...] As such, I terminated him. I will withhold further comment as this incident is still under investigation."