On Thursday, a unanimous jury in Mesa, Arizona has found police officer Philip Brailsford not guilty of second-degree murder in the January 2016 shooting of Daniel Shaver. The 26-year-old Shaver of Granbury, Texas, was unarmed when he was shot five times and killed by Brailsford. Mesa officers had responded to a La Quinta Inn hotel, where guests had reported seeing a man with a gun. Shaver reportedly had a pellet gun in a room. Officers ordered Shaver and a woman to exit the room and crawl on the floor toward them. While Shaver crawled, he motioned to his waistline, prompting Brailsford to open fire. Witnesses described Shaver as heavily intoxicated that night, and local reports alleged he was attempting to pull up his sagging shorts as he crawled.
