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Fort Worth police release partial 911 call, body camera video of fatal shooting

The department said they released the clips and the recorded statement in an effort to "keep the public informed and maintain transparency."

FORT WORTH, Texas — Editor's note: The video above is from a previous report. 

New audio and video released by police give a fuller picture of what happened in the moments before a man was fatally shot by officers in northern Fort Worth, Tuesday. 

Officers were sent to Bear Creek Trail around 12:30 p.m. Dec. 7 after receiving a 911 call from a man, identified by the medical examiner's office as 29-year-old Mitchell Davis. 

Davis, according to officials, told the dispatcher he was armed with a Glock. 

In excerpts from the 911 call, Davis can be heard telling the dispatcher he felt like he was "possessed" and was worried he was going to use the gun to harm his parents.

"I just need you guys to come," he told the dispatcher. "I'm going to hurt somebody. I have a gun in my pocket right now."

Edited body camera video, provided by police, then shows the Fort Worth officers arriving to a field by a pond behind some homes. That's where they encountered Davis, where they can be seen repeatedly telling Davis to keep his hands up as they approached him. 

Video shows Davis kneeling in the field with his hands up as officers close in on him. But roughly one minute after first encountering him, officers can be heard yelling "Don't do it!" as Davis appears to put his hand in his pocket. When he withdraws it, it appears Davis is holding something in his hands as he raises them. The edited video then cuts to black, presumably when officers opened fire. 

A slowed-down version of the moment in question - when police said Davis produced the gun and pointed it at officers - then plays, though the video still does not clearly show what Davis may be holding.

Davis died at the scene after life-saving measures. The Tarrant County medical examiner's office ruled his death was caused by "multiple gunshot wounds," though police have not elaborated on how many times he was shot. 

Initial information released by police on the day of the shooting also did not indicate whether a gun was recovered from the scene. But in a recorded statement accompanying the excerpted audio and video, Fort Worth Police Chief Neil Noakes said officers recovered a "very realistic" weapon from the scene.

"There was absolutely no way for our officers to know it was not a real firearm when it was produced," he said.

The department, which has not yet held a public news conference, said they released the clips and the recorded statement in an effort to "keep the public informed and maintain transparency."

"This was a tragic incident for everyone involved," Noakes said in his remarks. "What you didn't see was our call taker on the line with the individual for an extended amount of time, trying to keep him calm, giving him commands to put his hands up and pleading with him to put the gun down."

"It's another reminder of the split-second decisions (officers) have to make based on the information they have at the time," he added.

Finally, Noakes touched on the importance of mental health, urging anyone who may be struggling to seek help right away. He closed by asking for "prayers for all involved in this incident."

Officials say the case is still under investigation by the department's Major Case Unit and Internal Affairs Unit, in coordination with the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office.

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