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Horrific Body Cam Footage Shows Texas Cop Fatally Shooting Unarmed 18-Year-Old

Charles Roundtree was unarmed when Officer Steve Casanova fired shots.

Back in October of 2018, an officer approached a San Antonio, Texas home, which was purportedly a known drug house.

Officer Steve Casanova took down a complaint from a couple who was delivering Menudo (a type of Mexican chicken soup) in the troubled neighborhood. The couple flagged down the officer and claimed that the man was “popped in the face” by someone in the residence.

When the cops went to visit the home for questioning, the visit quickly turned fatal after the officer let off two rounds intended for a man who he claimed he thought had a gun in his waistband.

The shocking bodycam footage of the lethal shooting, which included the death of 18-year-old Charles Roundtree, has recently been released.

The video displays Casanova knocking on the door, nudging it open to reveal a group of friends (Davante Snowden, witness Taylor Singleton, and Roundtree) sitting on a couch in the living room.

The officer entered unexpectedly and without announcing that he was a police officer. According to a statement Singleton gave to KEN5, the trio were blinded by the officer's flashlight as they tried to make out who was entering the home around 1 a.m.

She made it clear that Casanova hadn’t identified himself as an officer and only said to the blinded group, “What’s up, man?”

Snowden stands and asks, “Who the f**k is this?” which is when things turn deadly. Casanova shouts angrily, “Let me see your f**king hands” after allegedly assuming the standing man was gun-toting and fired off two rounds into the house.

“I couldn’t see exactly what was in his waist because his hand was covering it. Then he kinda moved it slightly and I saw a gun,” Casanova shared at the end of the video with detectives who later arrived on the scene.

Here’s where things get confusing: According to police reports on the incident, the shot went through Snowden’s buttock and into Roundtree’s chest.

The witness, Taylor Singleton, disputes the report and says that the officer “sprayed” the room with gunfire and shot an unarmed Roundtree in the chest.

"The only reason I didn't get hit is because the bullet that went through Davante's butt went past me and went into the wall at the neighbor's house," Singleton said.

See the disturbing footage below:

Davante Snowden sustained non-life threatening injuries and was charged with felony gun possession. His lawyer, Alex Washington, refuted San Antonio Police Department’s story, claiming that DNA testing conducted on a weapon found at the scene hadn’t contained Snowden’s fingerprints. He is adamant that the bodycam footage will help prove that Snowden never had a weapon, and had only stood up.

Charles Roundtree, however, unfortunately, died at only 18-years-old on October 17, 2018. His family is suing the SAPD asserting that Snowden was unarmed and that Casanova did not provide sufficient medical attention to Roundtree’s life-threatening gunshot wound at the scene.

Following the tragic shooting in October, SAPD Chief William McManus said, “It's a very, very unfortunate, tragic incident that happened...Unfortunately, that person who was just sitting there was killed by a bullet fired at someone who was attempting to use deadly force against police."

He then praised Casanova for his handling of the matter, stating, "The approach was very professional. There was nothing hostile about it and unfortunately, the reaction from the individual with the gun was something he should not have done."

No disciplinary action has been taken except, Steve Casanova being placed on administrative duty as part of the department’s standard protocol.

SAPD has yet to comment on the footage because litigation is still pending. The family of Roundtree is suing for wrongful death.

Rest in power, Charles Roundtree.

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