Cops Say Handcuffed 21-Year-Old Shot Himself

The two police officers who were on the scene when a 21-year-old man was shot in the head and killed while handcuffed in the back of a patrol car Saturday night in Jonesboro, Ark., have been placed on administrative leave, and police are investigating what exactly led to Chavis Carter's death. But Jonesboro Police Department Sgt. Lyle Waterworth already has an idea: He thinks Carter must have pulled out a hidden gun and shot himself.

It shouldn't surprise anyone that Carter's mother, who says she thinks her son was shot in the right temple (he was left-handed), isn't accepting that version of events. And as news of this tragedy spreads throughout the nation, she's likely not at all alone in her theory about what really happened. "I think they killed him," she said.

From the Huffington Post:

"As protocol, he was handcuffed behind his back, double-locked and searched," said Jonesboro Police Department Sgt. Lyle Waterworth in an interview with WREG-TV.

Just minutes later, police said they heard a thumping noise, turned around and found Carter shot in the head.

Waterworth said he thinks Carter pulled out a hidden gun and shot himself. “Any given officer has missed something on a search, you know, be it drugs, be it knives, be it razor blades," he said. "This instance, it happened to be a gun."

His mother, Teresa Carter, disagrees. "I think they killed him," she said. "My son wasn't suicidal."

Read more at the Huffington Post.

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