On a Lundi Gras evening in New Orleans, what began as a dispute at a suburban mall escalated into a fatal encounter that ended the life of a young man. That man was Eric Harris, a 22-year-old African-American male, who was shot and killed on February 8, 2016, following a vehicle chase with law enforcement. The events of that night sparked conflicting narratives and a lengthy investigation into the actions of the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office deputies involved.
The incident began at
the Oakwood Mall in Gretna, where deputies were alerted to an incident involving Harris. He was reportedly armed with a gun. This prompted a pursuit that crossed the Mississippi River and concluded in the Central City neighborhood of New Orleans. With Harris behind the wheel, the chase came to an abrupt end when his vehicle stopped. It was at this moment that Jefferson Parish deputies felt they were in danger, leading them to open fire. The New Orleans Coroner's Office later confirmed that Harris died from multiple gunshot wounds. A handgun was reportedly recovered from the vehicle Harris was driving.
The two deputies involved in the shooting were identified as Kenneth Bonura, who is white, and Henry DeJean, who is black. According to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff at the time, the deputies fired their weapons when they saw the reverse lights of Harris's car illuminate after it had crashed into a telephone pole, leading them to believe he was about to drive towards them. However, a passenger in Harris's vehicle, his girlfriend Tyshara Blouin, disputed this account. She stated that after the crash, Harris was asking if she was okay when the deputies began shooting, and that he did not have time to put the car in reverse.
In the aftermath of the shooting, a joint investigation was launched by the New Orleans Police Department and the FBI to determine the circumstances of Harris's death. Investigators recovered nine shell casings from the scene. Ultimately, the Orleans Parish District Attorney's office, after a thorough review of the investigation, concluded that there was not enough evidence to pursue criminal charges against Deputies Bonura and DeJean. The family of Eric Harris was notified of this decision and subsequently filed a wrongful death lawsuit.
