WARNING: This video contains graphic content and graphic language; viewer discretion is advised.
A Greenville Deputy shot an armed resident recently in a call gone wrong in South Carolina. After the deputy rang the doorbell, the legal, concealed carrier came to the door armed with a pistol. That’s when the deputy fired through the window, dropping the homeowner with two shots.
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Greenville Deputy Shoots Homeowner
Initial police reports claimed the homeowner, 62-year-old Dick Tench, opened the door and pointed a gun. However, officer body cam footage refutes that statement. Footage clearly shows the officer, identified as Deputy Kevin Azzara, according to greenvilleonline.com, fire two rounds through the window adjacent to a closed front door.
“The Sheriff’s Office’s statement for weeks after the shooting was that my client opened his front door and aimed at a deputy, and you can look at that body cam — that ends that version,” said attorney Beattie Ashmore, as reported by greenvilleonline.com. “It’s difficult to explain how something like this could have happened.”
A July 30 Facebook post from the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office attempts to explain the confusion:
After a full internal investigation, this statement has proven to be inaccurate and we retract that portion of the original statement. To be clear, at no time during the internal investigation did the Deputy make such a statement, it was miscommunicated that the door was opened.
The incident began when the deputy responded to a call initiated by a cell phone emergency alarm. The deputy went to the home around midnight after officials failed to reach anyone associated with the cell phone number, according to greenvilleonline.com.
That’s when the call nearly turned deadly. Footage of the shooting, and the subsequent exchange between Azzara and Tench, seemingly show neither man knew who the other was or what their intentions were.
Tench suffered two gunshot wounds during the incident, and is recovering. One bullet struck his aortic artery, while the other hit the pelvis. Two bullets grazed his side. Meanwhile, the Greenville Sheriff’s Office placed Azzara on administrative leave, according to greenvilleonline.com.