MANTEO — The special prosecutor assigned to the case has announced that he will not file charges against Edward Francis Glaser III, a Dare County Sheriff’s Office deputy who fatally shot a Manteo man on Oct. 2.
“This shooting was indisputably tragic, but it was not unlawful,” Charles “Chuck” Spahos, a Cary-based prosecutor, concluded in the informational release from his office.
The Virginian-Pilot in mid-October had identified Glaser as the deputy who shot Sylvester Demetrius Selby, 44, but officials had not confirmed Glaser’s name prior to Wednesday’s release.
The Dare County Sheriff’s Office has not responded to questions about Glaser’s employment status.
Glaser remains listed as a “deputy sheriff master officer” on Dare County’s online staff directory.
“Deputy Glaser was justified under North Carolina law in that it appeared that it was necessary to kill in order to save himself or others from death or great bodily harm,” according to Spahos, who cited state statute.
“I’m devastated and afraid for the future of my community,” Selby’s sister, Ebony Selby, said about the decision.
To make his determination, Spahos reviewed the investigation the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) completed — which included “extensive interviews of all witnesses” and a review of both responding officers’ body-worn camera footage, according to the release.
The only surviving witnesses of the incident were Glaser, Sgt. DuWayne Gibbs and John Simms, the resident of the trailer outside of which Selby was killed, according to the release.
Glaser shot Selby three times, and Selby — who was described as already bleeding from a knife wound to the chest — was on the ground twice during the incident, according to the release.
Glaser “perceived Selby was still armed and a deadly threat” even after Selby was on the ground the first time from Glaser’s first shot. Selby had come out of the trailer holding a knife, according to the release.
“It appears that the force used by Deputy Glaser was authorized by G.S. 15A-401 (d)(2)(a) to defend himself and Sergeant Gibbs from what a reasonable officer would have believed to be the use of imminent use of deadly physical force by Mr. Selby,” Spahos concluded.
In North Carolina, the media and members of the public can only obtain law enforcement video footage with a judge’s order.
To date, only law enforcement and Selby’s close family members have seen the footage of Selby’s death.
The two accounts are very different.
___
Differing accounts
The family filed a $5 million-plus federal lawsuit against Glaser and Dare County Sheriff Doug Doughtie after viewing the footage.
The lawsuit alleges two claims for relief against both Glaser and Doughtie: Assault and battery, and intentional wrongful death. The suit alleges two additional claims against only Glaser: Unlawful force in violation of the Fourth Amendment and excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment.
“Deputies could see the blood dripping from Selby’s wound and the fact that he was holding a kitchen knife in one hand, in a nonthreatening manner, and an apple in the other as he was exiting the home,” according to a Dec. 8 press release announcing the Dec. 7 lawsuit filing.
“He was 25 feet away, stumbling in the opposite direction and bleeding out from a chest wound the first time Glaser shot him, and he was unarmed, defenseless and on his hands and knees the second and third time he fired,” Harry Daniels, the family’s attorney, said in the press release.
According to Spahos’ release, after Selby didn’t “comply with the commands” Gibbs and Glaser verbally gave to put the knife down, Glaser fired “one shot from his department-issued firearm” that struck Selby in the torso. Selby fell to the ground and began “thrashing violently.”
The officers instructed Selby not to get up multiple times, but Selby got on his hands and knees then “leaps to his feet, and lunges at Deputy Glaser,” the release continued.
Glaser fired two more rounds. After Selby was on the ground a second time, the officers “immediately request emergency medical personnel.” Gibbs found that Selby did not have a pulse and was deceased, according to Spahos’ release.
“Deputy Glaser said Selby came out armed with a knife, refused to follow commands to drop the knife, and quickly closed distance on Sergeant Gibbs and himself as the reasons why he used deadly force,” the release said, attributing that information to the SBI interview with Glaser. “He said he was protecting Sergeant Gibbs and himself.”
Gibbs said Glaser saved his life after it appeared he was in “imminent deadly danger” of being stabbed, the release said.
“Sergeant Gibbs indicated he was not able to draw his firearm due to the trailer creating a tripping hazard while he was attempting to put distance between himself and Selby,” the release said, citing the SBI interview.
Gibbs did not draw his weapon at any time during the encounter, according to the family’s lawsuit.
___
‘He’s done this before’
Glaser and Gibbs responded around 11:30 p.m. to the 1300 block of Burnside Road in Manteo and were told a “Demetrius suspect was trespassing and tearing stuff up inside of the residence,” according to the release.
“As shown in the body-worn camera footage, Mr. Simms is present outside the residence, some distance from the porch, and leaning against a utility trailer parked in the yard,” the release said. “Mr. Simms is heard saying to the deputies, ‘He is going crazy…he is not allowed to come here because he has those spasms.’”
The release did not explain what that meant.
Selby’s family has said that Selby suffered from both Type 2 diabetes, for which he took insulin, and hypothyroidism. He was also struggling emotionally from the recent losses of his daughter, sister and niece from two incidents of gun violence, the family has said.
The caller — who was not identified but who called from the trailer where Selby was later shot — asked for an ambulance and confirmed three times that an ambulance was needed before asking for both ambulance and police, according to a redacted copy of the 911 call transcript from the incident.
The Dare County Sheriff’s Office has not released the 911 call recording or the original law enforcement report from the incident.
“He’s done this before…I don’t know if he needs to take his medicine or what,” the caller said, according to the redacted call transcript.
The last time such a scenario happened, police called for an ambulance, the caller said in the transcript.
That incident apparently happened Aug. 26.
According to Spahos, Deputy Glaser and a Manteo police officer “responded to a similar call” at the same address, when Simms on Aug. 26 reported that “Selby had entered his residence without permission” and that the men had been in “a tussle.”
Selby lunged at the Manteo officer, David Rhoads, during this incident, and “EMS and law enforcement had to restrain Mr. Selby to a gurney.” Then, emergency medical responders “had to chemically sedate Mr. Selby,” and Glaser “had to ride with EMS” to transport Selby to the hospital, according to the release.
Following Selby’s death, the Dare County Sheriff’s Office said it was conducting a separate, internal criminal investigation into the Oct. 2 911 call.
As of press deadline, questions about the conclusion and findings of that investigation remain unanswered.
During Selby’s autopsy, “it was discovered that Mr. Selby also had a knife wound to his chest that contributed to his death,” Spahos’ release said.
That autopsy report has not yet been released publicly.
___
Why the case had a special prosecutor
The SBI concluded its investigation in late November, according to an SBI spokesperson.
The case generally would then go to the district attorney, who determines whether to file charges.
District 1 District Attorney Jeff Cruden, however, requested that a special prosecutor be appointed for this case.
Cruden’s son is a Dare County Sheriff’s Office deputy who was roommates with Glaser, and his daughter is best friends with Selby’s niece, Cruden explained in a Thursday phone call.
Cruden has served as district attorney just over a year and has only referred this and one other case “to somebody outside of the district” for personal reasons.
“It’s a small beach,” he said, noting that “just the fact you know them is not a sufficient basis” for doing so. But in cases where he considers his relationship would be perceived as too close, he requests that a special prosecutor be appointed.
Spahos is not an elected district attorney, but works for the North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys, Cruden said.
According to his online professional information, Spahos is chief financial crimes prosecutor for the conference. He is also a certified police officer.
Spahos is a former elected solicitor general in Georgia, which is “similar to our district attorneys;” former executive director of the Georgia Prosecuting Attorneys Council; and has over 26 years of experience prosecuting cases ranging from speeding tickets to homicides, “including numerous use of force case reviews,” according to a judicial branch spokesperson with the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts Communications Office.
“While he maintains a certification as a law enforcement officer, he has not served as a law enforcement officer since 1998,” they said.
“Any loss of life is tragic,” Cruden said in a Wednesday release about Spahos’ decision. “Deputy Glaser did not respond to the home of Mr. Simms that evening to do harm.”
Cruden expressed thankfulness for officers like Glaser and Gibbs who are “willing to serve their communities and respond to potential life-threatening situations daily, and by doing so potentially place themselves in harm’s way.”
He added, “My biggest regret is that Mr. Selby had not received the help he obviously needed earlier, so possibly such a situation could have been avoided.”
