Lorain Police release body camera footage of man shot by officers after K-9 stabbed
By: The Lorain Police Department held a news conference Wednesday afternoon to provide an update and show body camera footage captured last month when a man was fatally shot by an officer after stabbing a police K-9.
The shooting happened July 30 in the 1200 block of West 20th Street around 5:20 p.m.
Police originally went to the home to serve a felonious assault warrant on 48-year-old Charles Ronald White.
Authorities said White wouldn't leave the residence, so officers yelled for him to come out and surrender. Officers on scene called out more than a dozen times before entering the home, police said.
The K-9, Rye, searched the house and located the man in the basement of the home.
Video of the incident shows the K-9 handler, officer Kyle Shawver, head downstairs after hearing the dog and White in a fight.
Shawver's body camera captured footage of White attacking the dog with a knife. Shawver can be seen kicking at the weapon to disarm the man before "hopping" backwards to avoid being cut himself.
The officer opened fire, striking White five times. White was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.
According to police, Shawver discharged his firearm after White tried to cut him on the leg near his femoral artery.
“He attempted to stab Officer Shawver near or above the femoral artery in the leg, and that’s when Officer Shawver jumped back in defense of himself and discharged his weapon. It’s not because of the K-9,” said Chief Jim McCann, Lorain Police Dept.
The K-9 was taken to an animal hospital for treatment of four stab wounds to his face and mouth. The dog is currently in recovery, but police said they aren't sure if he will return to work.
Shawver is currently on administrative leave, per department policy. The Elyria Police Department is handling the shooting investigation at LPD's request.