Dallas Chief of Police Eddie Garcia revealed the body camera footage on Monday depicting the events leading to a fatal police shooting.
According to Garcia, the police received a distress call from a woman reporting that a man armed with a knife and a machete was threatening her and a dog in a wooded area behind an apartment complex on 5850 Beltline Road. Upon their arrival at approximately 6:45 p.m., the officers located the individuals in a tent, with the man holding a knife and the woman claiming to be injured.
Despite repeated orders to drop the weapon and exit the tent, the man, identified as 34-year-old Cody Watkins, refused to comply. Even after attempts to persuade him using non-lethal methods, including a stun gun, pepper spray, and foam bullets, Watkins was unyielding.
Garcia detailed that after approximately 50 minutes of negotiation, Watkins charged toward the officers with the knife, prompting two officers to open fire, striking him at least once. Paramedics from Dallas Fire-Rescue arrived shortly after to transport him to the hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries at around 8:50 p.m. “I think one of the dynamics is the individual was armed with a knife. The individual did not comply with the commands to back down. They tried utilizing talking him down. They utilized a Tazer, they utilized a less-lethal foam round on the individual and still nothing,” said Garcia.
The woman, who sustained minor injuries, is expected to recover. Watkins had a criminal record that included assault-family violence, fraud, unlawful carrying of a weapon, and several drug charges.
Garcia shared an edited body camera recording, showing the officers’ attempts to de-escalate the situation. The video depicted the usage of less-lethal force and the subsequent shooting after Watkins charged at the officers with the knife. “Obviously, they used less-lethal, and that was not effective, and so had that individual decided to charge out and stab one of my officers, they had no reason to believe any of the less-lethal would have had an effect because it previously didn’t have an effect. So, in defense of their lives, is why they decided to do that,” Garcia explained. “It’s a tragedy for everyone.”