Omaha bar owner will not be charged for fatally shooting protester who attacked him


Lauren Theisen

New York Daily News

The white local business owner in Omaha, Nebraska, who shot and killed 22-year-old James Scurlock amid protests against police brutality on Saturday night will not be charged in connection with his death, the Douglas County Attorney announced on Monday.

Prosecutors say that the bar owner, Jacob Gardner, was part of a confrontation involving Scurlock and a few others. When Gardner was pushed down, he fired two shots from his handgun, which led to Scurlock grabbing him and putting him in a chokehold. That’s when Gardner shot Scurlock in the clavicle, killing him in an act that prosecutors have defined as self-defense.

The lack of charges in this case will be unwelcome news to the Scurlock family, who in a press conference on Sunday called for Gardner’s prosecution.

“My family wants closure and peace,” the victim’s father, James Scurlock II, said. “What we want is for this to go to court and get a full prosecution.”

———

©2020 New York Daily News

Visit New York Daily News at www.nydailynews.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.