WASHINGTON — The motorcyclist shot by a police officer who had his body camera turned off at the time died from a gunshot wound to the neck and back, according to a report from the D.C. Office of the Medical Examiner.
The medical examiner’s report out Wednesday does not say how many times 31-year-old Terrence Sterling was shot by 27-year-old D.C. police officer Brian Trainer on Sept. 11.
On that morning, Trainer fatally shot Sterling near 3rd and M streets in Northwest after police say he rammed the passenger-side door of a police car while trying to flee a traffic stop. Trainer was the only officer on the scene equipped with a body-worn camera and did not turn it on until after the shooting.
Sterling’s death was ruled a homicide, said DC Office of the Medical Examiner Director of Communications LaShon Beamon. But that does not necessarily mean a crime was committed.
The D.C. Office of the Medical Examiner will not released any additional details about Sterling’s autopsy at this time.
On Tuesday, D.C. officials released the body-camera footage showing the moments after Sterling was shot. Released a day after protesters called for more transparency in the case, the footage shows the officers providing medical assistance to a Sterling, who was black.
