A judge granted bond Thursday to a former Florida sheriff's deputy who was indicted on manslaughter charges following the shooting of a U.S. Air Force senior airman at the door of the Black man's apartment, The Associated Press reports. Former Okaloosa County deputy Eddie Duran, 38, faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted of manslaughter with a firearm, a rare charge against a Florida law enforcement officer. Judge Terrance R. Ketchel set bond at $100,000 and said Duran could not possess a firearm or leave the area, though he will not have to wear a GPS tracker. He was released from jail shortly after Thursday’s hearing, jail records show.
Duran’s body camera recorded him shooting 23-year-old Roger Fortson on May 3 immediately after Fortson opened the door while holding a handgun pointed at the floor. The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office initially said Duran fired in self-defense after encountering a man with a gun, but Sheriff Eric Aden fired Duran on May 31 after an internal investigation concluded his life was not in danger when he opened fire. Outside law enforcement experts have also said that an officer cannot shoot only because a possible suspect is holding a gun if there is no threat. Duran was responding to a report of a physical fight inside an apartment at the Fort Walton Beach complex. But he apparently arrived at the wrong door - Fortson was alone in his apartment, talking with his girlfriend on a FaceTime video call. After repeated knocking, Fortson opened the door. Authorities say that Duran shot him multiple times and only then did he tell Fortson to drop the gun.