In the fall of 2013, a confrontation at a homeless shelter in Mount Vernon, Virginia, ended in the death of 28-year-old James Bryant. On the evening of October 30th, Fairfax County police were called to the Eleanor U. Kennedy Shelter on Richmond Highway in response to reports of a man assaulting other residents.
When two officers arrived, they encountered James Bryant. According to police accounts, Bryant assaulted one of the officers and managed to take his baton. He then reportedly used the baton to assault the second officer. Police stated that they attempted to use multiple forms of non-lethal force to subdue Bryant, but these efforts were unsuccessful. The officer who had been struck with the baton, PFC Mohammed Oluwa, then discharged his service weapon, shooting Bryant. Bryant was transported to a local hospital where he died from his injuries. The officer who was assaulted with the baton was also taken to the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.
The parents of James Bryant questioned the police's use of lethal force, stating that their son was unarmed at the time of the shooting. They described their son as feeling that the shelter was the safest place for him to be. A witness at the shelter also claimed to have seen Bryant on the ground with an officer over him, and did not see a weapon.
Following the incident, the two officers involved were placed on routine administrative leave, and an investigation was launched by the Fairfax County Police Department. The Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney, Raymond F. Morrogh, conducted a review of the shooting and concluded that there was no basis for criminal liability on the part of PFC Oluwa. Consequently, no criminal charges were filed against the officer, who later returned to his patrol duties. The case was then subject to an internal police administrative investigation to ensure departmental policies and procedures were followed.
