Who was Melissa Horton? Fiance of woman shot dead by deputies says they didn't have to 'gun her down like a dog'
FAYETTE COUNTY, TENNESSEE: Brownsville, Tennessee resident Melissa Horton, 43, was shot dead by Shelby County Sheriff’s deputies in Bartlett on March 18, while attempting to pull over her white SUV, per WREG.
The dashcam footage of the incident was released for the first time on Tuesday, October 17, after which Horton’s fiance Preston Morris said the deputies need not have to “gun her down like a dog” after District Attorney Steve Mulroy declared that the two deputies involved will not face any charges.
What did Melissa Horton’s fiance say?
Horton’s fiance, Preston Morris saw the video footage for the first time since the fatal shooting in March.
He criticized the action and said, “To shoot her 15-16 times, a mother of three beautiful kids, 43-year-old woman, and just gun her down like she’s a freaking convict that just robbed a bank, like my goodness,” as reported by WREG.
The footage showed the Shelby County police officers were attempting to pull over the white SUV that Horton was driving.
While she appeared to have complied initially, she presumably tried to accelerate and go around before she was fatally shot.
District Attorney Mulroy said that the woman pointed a shotgun at one of the deputies which warranted such drastic measure from the police.
Mulroy explained, “The video shows that, unfortunately, she lifted a shotgun and pointed it towards one of the deputies, so she was armed, and that was one of the main reasons why we decided that criminal charges against the officers or the deputies were not warranted.”
Morris said that earlier the same day he called police from his Fayette County home after he had an altercation with Horton with her pointing the same gun towards him.
He recalled her to be a beautiful person and fantastic mother but admitted she had a drinking problem and became upset with him after he said he required her help. But the grieving man admitted, “They didn’t have to go in there gung-ho and gun her down like a dog. That’s the only thing that bothers me.”
He further acquiesced that Horton was probably not thinking of killing the deputies, saying, “No, I think that. When she’s been drinking, she doesn’t follow commands at all, trust me.”
While the judge has ruled out any punishment for the deputies involved, Morris thinks justice will be served, “I think that they’ll have to live with that for the rest of their lives and I think that’s going to be punishment enough because I know they can’t sleep at night, those two that shot her.”
How did Melissa Horton die?
In the footage, a deputy is seen moving towards the car with his gun pointed towards the driver's seat. He was heard saying, "Get out the truck. Get the f*** out the truck. Get the f*** out this motherf****ing truck," while banging on the other window, per Fox 13.
Another deputy was heard saying, "Let me see your hands."
Following which, Horton turns around inside the vehicle. Through the window, Horton pointed what looked like a shotgun towards the deputy. It was then the officer starts firing at her.
After around 20 shots, the window of the car gets shattered and bullet holes appear on the car.