The events surrounding the fatal shooting near Tysons Corner Center in February have sparked intense legal and public debate. This article delves into the details of the incident, the subsequent investigations, and the legal proceedings that followed.
Tysons Corner Center
The Incident
On February 22, 2023, an alleged attempt to shoplift a pair of designer sunglasses from Nordstrom at Tysons Corner Center ended in a fatal police shooting. The man shot and killed by two police officers near a mall parking lot that evening was D.C. resident Timothy McCree Johnson, the Fairfax County Police Department reported the next day.
According to a police account of the shooting, an officer saw Johnson exit the store and set off an anti-theft alarm. “Asset protection reported a man was concealing designer sunglasses,” the FCPD said. Surveillance video footage and body camera footage showed Johnson taking a pair of sunglasses from Nordstrom, then exiting the store toward the parking garage. An officer observed the man exiting the store near a parking garage.
Police body camera footage shows the nighttime chase and shooting. Soon after, Johnson can be heard saying: “I’m not reaching for nothing.” Both officers open fire, but Shifflett fired the fatal shot. Timothy Johnson was shot and killed by Fairfax County police officers outside Tysons Corner Center on the evening of February 22.
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Later, Shifflett tells another officer that he saw the suspect reaching for a weapon in his waistband. Police searched for a weapon but found nothing.
The Investigation and Legal Proceedings
The Fairfax County Police Department fired Shifflett the following month for what Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis called “a failure to live up to the expectations of our agency, in particular use of force policies.” Criminal and administrative investigations into the use of force are underway.
Initially, a grand jury declined to indict Shifflett in the shooting, but Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano sought and received court approval for a special grand jury to reinvestigate, which he said gave prosecutors a greater ability to oversee the investigation. The second panel chose to indict Shifflett.
Wesley Shifflett is charged with involuntary manslaughter and reckless discharge of a weapon in the killing of 37-year-old Timothy McCree Johnson near a busy shopping mall on Feb. 22, 2023. Shifflett pleaded not guilty.
Descano said at the time that an involuntary manslaughter charge is appropriate when a killing occurs due to “gross or wanton conduct” that lacks malice. Caleb Kershner, Shifflett’s attorney, blasted Descano’s decision to impanel a special grand jury and the subsequent indictment. “Few people understand what it’s like to have a gun pulled on you and regularly being put in risk of death,” Kershner said at the time. “These men and women in uniform serve by putting their lives on the line every day.”
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Evidence and Testimony
In recent hearings, attorneys squabbled over what evidence could be presented at trial. Barry Zweig, the lead prosecutor, filed a motion to be allowed to introduce evidence that Shifflett had aimed his weapon at other shoplifters in other instances, but Circuit Court Judge Randy Bellows denied that request. Bellows agreed to allow Shifflett's defense team to present evidence concerning Johnson's criminal history.
After opening statements, the commonwealth attorney called their first witness to the stand - a part-time Nordstrom worker who was assigned to the sunglasses section the day of the incident. She testified she saw Johnson take two sunglasses, then contacted the loss prevention team. The second witness who took the stand was an Assistant Asset Manager at the time. He testified to seeing Johnson with the sunglasses that day. He also explained the protocol involved before the security team would apprehend someone.
Johnson was 17 years old when he tried to steal a vehicle belonging to an off-duty agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Maryland. As he tried to flee in the vehicle, Johnson nearly hit the agent, who responded by shooting him. In 2004, Johnson pleaded guilty as a juvenile to second-degree assault. Johnson also pleaded guilty in 2019 to involuntary manslaughter in a fatal Washington car crash while he was driving under the influence.
The Verdict and Sentencing
On October 4, 2024, Shifflett, 36, was convicted by a jury for recklessly handling a firearm, which is a Class 6 felony. On Friday, a Fairfax County Judge sentenced 36-year-old Wesley Shifflett to five years in prison, with two years suspended and an additional five years of probation. Judge Randy Bellows sentenced Shifflett to 5 years, with 2 years suspended, and an additional 5 years of probation. As part of his sentence, he will be on probation for 10 years. He was ordered to never return to the mall.
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Body-camera footage released of officer killing man during chase at Tysons Corner Center
“Today, the person who was responsible for this tragedy has been held accountable. “Today, the justice system has shown that perpetrators of gun violence will be held accountable for their actions,” Descano said in a statement. “Firing a gun into a public space is a serious crime, one that endangered our community members and threatened their future sense of safety."
Governor's Intervention
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin commuted the sentence of Wesley Shifflett, a Fairfax County Police Officer who was convicted of killing an unarmed man during a 2023 police chase at Tysons Corner Center.
“I am convinced that the court's sentence of incarceration is unjust and violates the cornerstone of our justice system-that similarly situated individuals receive proportionate sentences," Youngkin said in a statement. I want to emphasize that a jury acquitted Sgt. Shifflett of the more serious charge of involuntary manslaughter, a conviction for which the sentencing guidelines recommend no jail time or up to six months’ incarceration.
In this case, the court rejected the Senior Probation and Parole Officer’s recommendation of no incarceration nor supervised probation and instead imposed a sentence of five years’ incarceration with two suspended and an additional five years of probation. Sgt. Shifflett has no prior criminal record, and was, by all accounts, an exemplary police officer. It is in the interest of justice that he be released immediately.
My action does not limit Sgt.
Former Fairfax County officer Wesley Shifflett appears in court on Sept. 18, 2024. (Bill Hennessey)