Pennsylvania cop charged with manslaughter in fatal shooting of unarmed student: ‘Mr. Pysher was not a threat’

“I HAD TO SHOOT BEFORE HE GOT ANY CLOSER”!!! BELIEVE IT OR NOT, PROSECUTORS SAY UPPER POTTSGROVE POLICE CPL. SEAN FARRELL SHOT AND KILLED AN UNARMED 22-YEAR-OLD COLLEGE STUDENT WHO HAD HIS HANDS RAISED AT THE WRONG HOUSE… AND THE OFFICER IS NOW CHARGED WITH VOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER.

A Pennsylvania police officer has been charged with voluntary manslaughter in connection with the fatal shooting of a 22-year-old college student, a prosecutor announced Tuesday.

Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele identified the officer as Upper Pottsgrove Police Cpl. Sean Farrell, 58.

Farrell is charged in the Aug. 23 death of Glenwood Earl Pysher IV.

According to prosecutors, the 22-year-old student had ended up at the wrong residence late at night and was waiting for friends to arrive and pick him up.

Steele stated that the officer had less-than-lethal options available and did not need to resort to gunfire during the encounter.

The shooting was investigated by the Montgomery County Detective Bureau.

Investigators reviewed footage recorded by Farrell’s body-worn camera, according to a news release from the district attorney’s office.

“The investigation found that Cpl. Farrell had less-than-lethal options on his utility belt that he did not employ, including a taser,” Steele said in the news release.

“At the time of the shooting, the officer was a safe distance from Pysher behind a car, and the victim had his hands in the air and did not possess any type of weapon,” the district attorney said.

“Mr. Pysher was not a threat,” Steele said.

“This is not a legal use of deadly force, leading to the charge of Voluntary Manslaughter,” Steele said in the release.

Following the announcement, an attorney representing Pysher’s family issued a statement thanking the prosecutor’s office.

“The family is grateful for the work of the Montgomery County District Attorney’s office and they are looking forward to justice in this horribly tragic, preventable and reckless conduct that took the life of their son,” said attorney Ken Fulginiti.

The investigation established that Pysher had visited several bars earlier that evening to celebrate a friend’s 21st birthday.

Around 11 p.m., a designated driver drove the group to the residence of the friend celebrating the birthday, the release states.

Pysher left that location approximately half an hour later on foot.

He intended to walk half a mile to another friend’s house to continue drinking, the district attorney’s office said.

Instead, Pysher arrived at the wrong address.

Pysher’s father, Glen Pysher, said he believes his son attempted to enter what he mistakenly believed was his friend’s home, based on information provided by the son’s friends.

“He tried to open the doorknob and obviously startled the homeowner,” Glen Pysher told The Associated Press last week.

“From what we understand, he announced, ‘Hey! Open the door!’ because he thought he was at his friend’s house,” the father told the AP.

The young man then sat down on the back porch and reached out to his friends.

His friends realized he was at the incorrect location and set out to find him, according to his father.

Meanwhile, a resident at the home called 911 to report an individual attempting to break through the back door.

Farrell was the first law enforcement officer to arrive at the scene.

Footage from Farrell’s body-worn camera showed him walking down the driveway with his service weapon drawn, using the attached light to see in the dark, the release states.

Farrell positioned himself behind a car in the driveway.

From that position, the officer observed Pysher standing on the home’s patio near the back door.

Farrell yelled, “Police, let me see your hands.”

Then Farrell shouted, “Hands up, hands up now, drop to the ground.”

Body camera footage shows Pysher raising his hands into the air.

Pysher then began walking toward the officer.

Pysher continued moving in that direction while Farrell yelled, “Drop to the ground,” the release said.

Farrell yelled a second time, “Drop to the ground.”

And Farrell then shouted, “Stop or I’ll…”

Farrell fired two shots before finishing that sentence, the district attorney’s office said.

The gunfire struck Pysher twice in the chest.

According to the news release, Pysher was between 17 and 20 feet away from Farrell when the shots were fired.

Farrell surrendered to Montgomery County Detectives on Tuesday.

Magisterial District Judge Kathleen Rebar set the officer’s bail at $75,000.

As a mandatory condition of his release, Farrell must turn over all weapons to the Pennsylvania State Police, a spokesperson for the district attorney’s office said.

Farrell is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing on Sept. 10.

The charges are allegations and have not been proven in court.