TULSA, Okla., Oct. 1 (UPI) -- Tulsa County Sheriff Stanley Glanz resigned after being indicted by a grand jury on misconduct charges after a fatal shooting by a reserve deputy.
In April, Tulsa County reserve deputy Robert Bates, 74, was charged with a second-degree manslaughter charge after fatally shooting Eric Courtney Harris with a gun, mistaking it for a Taser. The incident was caught on video on which viewers can hear Bates saying "I'm sorry" after a gunshot is heard.
At the time of his shooting, Harris was a convicted felon and initially a suspect in a methamphetamine investigation. He allegedly told officers he was able to sell illegal weapons. Bates and other officers pounced on Harris during a sting operation.
Following the shooting, an investigation ensued which determined that Glanz broke rules by allowing an unqualified friend -- Bates -- act as a reserve deputy with little supervision and forcing others to work with him through intimidation. Bates is an insurance broker who worked briefly as a police officer in the 1960s, helped the sheriff become re-elected and donated expensive equipment to Glanz's office, including vehicles.
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Following a hearing Wednesday in Tulsa, Glanz's lawyer, Scott Wood, said he would resign and Undersheriff Rick Weigel would take over immediately.
The investigation was sparked by a group called We the People Oklahoma, which drew a petition that got over 6,000 signatures during the summer. The goal was to get a grand jury to investigate Bates' case.
One of the group's members, Marq Lewis, told The New York Times that the campaign had nothing against Glanz and was instead concerned with the safety of people in Tulsa County.
The grand jury pointed to a 2009 report on Bates which indicated supervising officers were concerned by his conduct but were pressured to let it go by Glanz and other commanders. Additionally, the report showed Bates received a fraction of the training time necessary for his role with the sheriff's office.
Glanz said that his actions have brought him criticism both publicly and privately. He added he takes all the responsibility for his actions and that they were all made in good faith.
