Man fatally shot in front of stepson after pointing gun at cops: bodycam video
Cops in California fatally shot a man who pointed a loaded gun at them in front of his terrified 7-year-old stepson — who repeatedly screamed, “He’s my dad!” during the deadly showdown, according to bodycam video.
The graphic footage, released Wednesday, shows Burbank police responding to a report of a young child wandering alone in a parking lot at a Quality Inn around 5:30 a.m. March 8.
An employee at the hotel had asked police to do a welfare check after seeing the 7-year-old by himself for about 30 minutes outside.
The footage shows an officer approaching the boy and asking where his father is, prompting the child to say his dad was going to “go get a car.”
Cops soon learned that the 7-year-old and his stepdad, David William Kahler, 30, had been involved in a car crash on a nearby freeway in a vehicle believed to have been stolen from Las Vegas — and that the pair had fled on foot before walking to the hotel, said Burbank police Lt. Derek Green.
Kahler of Las Vegas had left the boy at the hotel as he tried to break into several vehicles nearby before finally stealing a maroon Honda Accord that he ultimately drove back to the Quality Inn, Green said.
Once back at the hotel, Kahler was confronted by cops while in the Accord, video shows.
He aimed a loaded 9mm handgun at police as an officer yells, “Drop the gun!,” according to the footage.
Kahler’s stepson frantically screams, “He’s my dad! He’s my dad!” right before the gunfire, the video shows.
Green says in the video statement that “one of the officers pointed his duty weapon at the suspect and fired three times.”
The little boy, who was being held by another officer, could be heard crying after the shooting and repeating, “No, no, no.”
Kahler was pronounced dead at a hospital. His stepson was unharmed and taken into protective custody, Green said.
A criminal investigation into the incident by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office is ongoing, Green said.
Kahler had an extensive criminal history, including arrests or convictions for weapons, assault, theft and drugs, Burbank police said.
via: https://nypost.com/2021/04/23/man-fatally-shot-in-front-of-stepson-after-aiming-gun-at-cops-video/
Photo Credit: Burbank Police Department