Pittsburgh officer charged with criminal homicide in shooting of Antwon Rose

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The East Pittsburgh Police officer who fatally shot 17-year-old Antwon Rose Jr. on June 19 has been charged with criminal homicide. According to court records, East Pittsburgh Police Officer Michael Rosfeld was formally charged Wednesday morning.

In a criminal complaint filed in the case, detectives cite witnesses who said Rose clearly had nothing in his hands when he was shot, contradicting what Rosfeld initially told investigators.

Rosfeld was conducting a traffic stop of the vehicle Rose was riding in, which police said fit the description of one used in a drive-by shooting that night. He told investigators he had ordered the driver out of the car, and down on the ground, when Rose got out of the vehicle.

According to Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala, Jr., Rose can be seen on witness video showing his hands before fleeing. No weapon was found on his person.

Rosfeld first told investigators that Rose "turned his hand toward" Rosfeld, who "saw something dark that he perceived as a gun," detectives wrote in the complaint. But when asked to repeat his version of events, Rosfeld's story changed, detectives wrote.

"During that rendition, Rosfeld told the detectives that he did not see a gun when the passenger emerged and ran. When confronted with this inconsistency, Rosfeld stated he saw something in the passenger's hand but was not sure what it was," detectives wrote in the complaint. "In addition, Officer Rosfeld stated that he was not certain if the individual who had his arm pointed at him was still pointing at him when he fired the shots."

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