Joshua Cooper

How they died

Deadly force

John Shortt allegedly led a four-person crew as they attempted to rob an unidentified officer and a female companion after the pair had left a nightclub. Shortt and an accomplice, who was wearing a balaclava, initially approached the officer and the woman at about 3:20 a.m. and allegedly pointed a handgun at him. The officer drew his own gun and began firing at the would-be robbers. The officer shot Shortt at least once. Two alleged accomplices of Shortt, Tyshawn Whidbee and Joshua Cooper, approached the officer and the woman from another direction. Whidbee pulled a gun and began firing at the cop and woman, shooting both of them. The officer was hit a number of times, and he shot and killed Cooper. John Shortt was charged with assaulting an officer with a deadly weapon.

Why we remember them

This record exists so that Joshua Cooper, and all who are named in this archive, are never reduced to a number.

References & sources