KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A civil trial in the fatal shooting by a KPD officer begins Tuesday in the United States District Court in Greeneville, Tennessee. Channara Pheap's family is suing KPD Officer Dylan Williams for the August 2019 shooting.
The Pheap family attorney, Lance Baker, told 10News the civil trial will be in front of a jury of 6.
In Judge Clifton L. Corker's final pretrial order, he said the Pheap family is arguing Williams used excessive force, was negligent and committed battery.
Plaintiffs argue Pheap tried to run away from Williams twice, and Williams shot Pheap in the back as he was running away a third time, the order said.
Williams' attorneys say the officer did not violate Pheap's constitutional rights. Defense attorneys argue Pheap placed Williams in a reasonable fear of death or bodily harm.
In 2019, District Attorney General Charme Allen cleared Williams of criminal wrongdoing. A memorandum from Assistant District Attorney General Sean F. McDermott said the shooting was "justifiable."
Williams was looking for the suspect in a hit-and-run case, the memo said. He saw the sedan police believed was involved at an apartment complex and tried to find the owner, McDermott wrote.
Witnesses said Pheap "'had the cop down on the ground' and described the two pulling and struggling down the hill," the memo said.
The autopsy report said Pheap was not shot in the back, McDermott wrote. "It is essentially a side-to-side shot, with Pheap's left side facing the gun," the memo said.
Days after the fatal shooting, the Knoxville City Council passed a resolution asking KPD to start the process of outfitting officers with body-worn cameras. Now, every patrol officer wears a camera.
Baker said the jury will first decide whether Williams used excessive force. If they do, they will later decide how much money, if any, they will award to the Pheap family.