"I want accountability because he was 23. I want accountability because he had a life ahead of him. I want accountability because he was in his own home," said Fortson's mother, Meka Fortson, who wore a shirt emblazoned with an image of her son in his Air Force uniform while appearing with the family's attorney, Ben Crump, at a press conference to announce the wrongful death lawsuit.
The complaint filed in federal court in Pensacola details alleged failures by the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office in training and supervision and claims that staff at the apartment complex where Fortson lived provided misleading information that led to the fatal law enforcement response.
Messages were left seeking comment from attorneys for Duran, a spokesperson for the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office and an agent for the apartment complex’s management company.
Duran has pleaded not guilty to a charge of manslaughter with a firearm in the shooting, which renewed debate on police killings and race, and occurred against a wider backdrop of increased attention by the military to racial issues in its ranks. Duran identifies as Hispanic, according to his voter registration.
The airman's mother said she has “no faith” in Okaloosa County, expressing doubt that Duran will get a “real trial” in the Florida Panhandle community where he worked as a law enforcement officer.
It is highly unusual for Florida law enforcement officers to be charged for an on-duty killing. Convictions in such cases are even rarer.
"This is not policing. This is an unlawful execution," said Crump, a civil rights attorney who has been involved in a number of cases involving law enforcement killings of Black people, including those of Michael Brown, Breonna Taylor, Tyre Nichols and George Floyd.
“We believe Roger’s death was a result of a pattern and practice here in Okaloosa County,” added Crump, who announced the lawsuit at a press conference at Greater Peace Missionary Baptist Church in Fort Walton Beach.
Duran came to Fortson's door in response to a report of a physical fight inside an apartment. A worker at the complex had identified Fortson's apartment as the location of a loud argument, according to sheriff's investigators. Fortson, who was assigned to the 4th Special Operations Squadron at Hurlburt Field, was alone at the time, talking with his girlfriend on a FaceTime video call.
Duran's body camera video showed what happened next.
The deputy pounded at the door repeatedly and yelled, “Sheriff’s office — open the door!” Fortson opened the door with his legally purchased gun in his right hand, pointed to the ground.
The deputy said, "Step back," then immediately began firing. Fortson fell backward onto the floor. Only then did the deputy yell, "Drop the gun!"
Deputies had never been called to Fortson’s apartment before, 911 records show, but they had been called to a nearby unit 10 times in the previous eight months, including once for a domestic disturbance.
Crump defended Fortson’s right to answer his door with his firearm in hand.
“He had a right to the Second Amendment too — to protect his home, to protect his castle," Crump said. “He didn’t do anything wrong.”
___ Associated Press writer Curt Anderson in Tampa contributed to this report. Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
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