Terry Tillman aimed gun at police, details of arrest warrant emerge
Police appear to have acted appropriately and honorably without malice as new details emerge in the Terry Tillman death.
Tillman,23, was killed by three to five gunshots to his front torso, St. Louis County police said Tuesday evening at a news conference about the police shooting of Tillman on Saturday near the St. Louis Galleria mall.
Sgt. Benjamin Granda of the county police said an autopsy Sunday found no wounds or injuries to Tillman’s back.
Terry Tillman
A Richmond Heights police officer who answered a call for assistance and a second officer believed to also be from Richmond Heights encountered Tillman on the steps between two levels of a parking garage across Clayton Road from the Galleria, Granda said.
The Richmond Heights officer who shot Tillman told investigators Tillman was pointing the gun at the second officer at the time, Granda said.
“We are going to continue our investigative efforts to ensure that that is factual,” Granda said.
The Richmond Heights officer fired five to seven shots at Tillman, who had run from the Galleria across Clayton Road.
Tillman did not fire his weapon.
Granda said there is video of the shooting, but it will not be released yet because the investigation is continuing. Granda also said that police are seeking about an hour of video footage from each of the 158 cameras inside the Galleria.
Tillman dropped to the ground after he was shot, and the officers took the weapon he had been holding, Granda said. Medics responding to the scene attempted to treat his wounds; he was pronounced dead at the scene shortly after he was shot.
County Prosecutor Wesley Bell asked the public for patience during the investigation.
“In tragic cases like these, it is important to understand that the need to inform the public has to be balanced with ensuring the integrity of the investigation,” Bell said in a statement posted to his office’s website.
“I am fully aware of how sensitive this issue is,” the statement continued. “And I want to assure all residents a thorough and detailed investigation is being conducted.”
Bell’s spokeswoman Josi Nielsen declined to elaborate on the process but said, “We are letting the police do their job” and that “all necessary resources are being devoted” to the investigation.
Tillman was wanted on an arrest warrant issued in February after he failed to appear in court on a felony stealing charge, according to court records. He allegedly tried to sell a Chicago-area man a car in that had been stolen in Baldwin.
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