Fort Worth police released body-camera footage Friday of a shooting in which a man, who was shot by an officer, died from a self-inflicted gunshot.
Police have been investigating how the man was killed last week after officers responded to a call from the man, who had called 911 and said he had a gun and wanted to harm himself.
Neil Noakes, the Fort Worth police chief, said at a news conference that he is “begging” anyone experiencing mental health challenges, or knows someone who is, to reach out for help. He called the shooting “tragic and traumatic” for the man’s loved ones and the responding officers.
“My heart goes out to the family and the loved ones,” Noakes said. “I cannot imagine what they’re going through. My heart also goes out to the officers involved and their families and what they’re going through.”
The man was identified as 58-year-old Brant Nickell, according to online records from the Tarrant County medical examiner’s office.
Officers responded to the mental health call about 6 p.m. Sept. 23, arriving to the 4800 block of Selkirk Drive, near Bilglade Road. There was a “large-scale” search for him for about an hour, Noakes said.
His vehicle was found in a parking lot, police said. In the body-camera footage, one of the officers reports that he saw the man in a drainage ditch and suggests pulling up to the car quietly.
“I don’t want this to turn into something it doesn’t need to be,” he says before he pulls up and gets out of the vehicle. Police check the man’s car.
As three officers are seen walking up to the culvert, which was fenced off, gunfire erupts, the footage shows. The officers yelled the man’s name and gave commands.
“Can you show me your hands?” one officer says in the footage. Then, the officers can be heard yelling “put that down.”
The man had displayed a handgun and raised it toward the officers, according to police. “I don’t want to do it,” one officer yells after the gunfire, the footage shows.
“That was a genuine statement,” Noakes said of the footage, adding that hearing the interaction “breaks my heart,” because the officer didn’t want to fire. Noakes said he did not yet know which officer struck the man.
After the initial gunfire, another shot is heard from inside a tunnel in the ditch. The footage shows one officer crawling down into the culvert. He found the man, who was pronounced dead there, holding the handgun.
No officers or other community members were hurt during the shooting, police said. An investigation into the shooting is ongoing.
“I hate they’re put in this position,” Noakes said. “I hate that this gentleman felt so desperate he thought this was the only answer.”
Noakes said the three officers had crisis intervention training and that officers are given time off work to process traumatic situations and that mental wellness is “critically important.”
Noakes urged people to reach out for mental health resources, especially before they are in a crisis. He added that he wasn’t blaming anyone involved with the man in his death.
Lifelines of support
- Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: If you or someone you know needs support now, call or text 988. Press 1 for military or veteran help. Chat at 988lifeline.org.
- Crisis Text Line: 24-hour support by texting HOME to 741741. More information at crisistextline.org.
- North Texas Behavioral Health Authority: 24-hour crisis hotline at 1-866-260-8000 or go to ntbha.org
- Suicide and Crisis Center of North Texas: Speak to a trained counselor on the 24-hour hotline at 214-828-1000 or go to sccenter.org
- Here For Texas Mental Health Navigation Line: Grant Halliburton Foundation initiative that connects North Texans with mental-health resources customized to each caller at 972-525-8181 or go to HereForTexas.com
