Grand Jury Indicts Charlotte Officer on Manslaughter Charge

A Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer was indicted Monday on voluntary manslaughter charges linked to the shooting death of an unarmed man, the Charlotte Observer reports.

A Mecklenburg grand jury returned the indictment against Police Officer Randall Kerrick after Superior Court Judge Bob Bell ruled earlier in the day that the 18-member panel could hear the case.

Kerrick, 28, was arrested Sept. 14 in connection with the shooting death of Jonathan Ferrell, 24. During a brief confrontation northeast of Charlotte, Kerrick fired 12 shots at Ferrell, hitting him 10 times.

A grand jury voted last week not to indict the police officer on voluntary manslaughter charges, instead asking state prosecutors to bring back a lesser charge for them to consider. Of the 277 cases that grand jury considered, only Kerrick’s did not end with an indictment.

Attorney Roy Cooper quickly announced plans to take the case -- and the original manslaughter charges – before the county’s other grand jury.