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Police body-camera video of the Oct. 2 shooting went viral on
social media, showing then-officer James Brennand opening the
driver's side door with his weapon drawn, demanding the driver
exit the vehicle. The officer could then be seen opening fire as
the teen drove away.
Brennand was fired two days after the shooting.
The victim, Erik Cantu, was unconscious and on life support nine
days after being shot, his lawyer said in a statement.
"This was a failure for one individual police officer. It had
nothing to do with our policies. Our policies do not allow that.
Our training does not teach that," San Antonio Police Chief
William McManus told a news conference to announce the charges.
"There is no question in anybody's mind looking at that video
that the shooting is not justified," McManus said.
Brennand could not be reached for comment and it was not
immediately clear who had been retained as his attorney.
Brennand was responding to an unrelated disturbance at the
McDonald's restaurant when, police said, he spotted a vehicle
that he believed had evaded him a day earlier.
Video shows him opening the door and demanding that Cantu get
out of the car while he was eating. Cantu asks why and backs up
when Brennand fired five times, then another five times as the
car pulls away.
A friend in the passenger seat was unharmed. The two counts
correspond to the two people in the car.
Brennand turned himself in after police secured a warrant for
his arrest from a judge and he was taken into custody, McManus
said.
The case will be turned over to the Bexar County District
Attorney's office to determine what charges may be sought for
prosecution, McManus said.
(Reporting by Daniel Trotta; Editing by Edmund Klamann)
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