The San Antonio Police Department (SAPD) has released body camera footage from the December 3 police shooting involving 33-year-old Jeffrey Schopp.
The department provided both narrated and non-narrated versions of the video, following its standard practice for releasing footage of officer-involved shootings.
The video captures an officer firing at Schopp, who was reportedly holding a firearm. The footage appears to show Schopp carrying a gun in his right hand as he ran through a drainage ditch, attempting to evade law enforcement.
The video begins with an interaction between Schopp and an officer as Schopp walked along a street sidewalk. The officer called Schopp over to his vehicle, but Schopp declined, asking if he was being detained. The officer informed him that he was being detained for allegedly jaywalking across the street.
“You’re detained right now — walk over there,” the officer said in the footage. “For crossing the street without a crosswalk, go walk over there.”
Schopp attempted to apologize, but the officer cut him off, warning that he would be handcuffed if he didn’t comply. Schopp continued apologizing before dropping one of his bags over a railing and running across the street. The officer pursued him, jumping the railing to give chase.
The video shows additional officers joining the pursuit, with one nearly grabbing Schopp as he climbed over a metal fence. The chase continued to a drainage ditch, where Officer James Lopez drew his taser.
“I’m gonna f— you up. You’re gonna get tased, bro,” Lopez warned Schopp.
Schopp did not comply with orders to get on the ground and instead sprinted into the ditch. At that point, Lopez switched from his taser to his firearm and fired multiple shots toward Schopp as he ran under a bridge. After emptying his magazine, Lopez reloaded.
Lopez shouted that Schopp had a gun, and officers followed Schopp to the other side of the bridge, urging him to drop the weapon. Lopez fired additional shots, striking Schopp, who then collapsed.
According to SAPD, further investigation revealed that Schopp fatally shot himself in the head as Lopez was firing. Emergency medical services pronounced him dead at the scene. No officers or bystanders were injured during the incident, per the department’s statement.
A .22 caliber handgun was recovered at the scene.
Officer Lopez has served with SAPD for four years, according to the department’s press release. The Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office stated that Schopp’s autopsy report would not be available for at least six weeks due to their standard timeline for such reports.
The Bexar County District Attorney’s Office is currently reviewing the incident, as is customary in all cases of officer-involved shootings.
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