Man charged after being shot by officer in west Charlotte, police say

Deputy Chief David Robinson said officers saw two people at Fast Mart #5 on Beatties Ford Road. When officers approached them, one person started walking and eventually ran away from the scene.

In a post on social media, police said the officers had approached the pair after seeing potential drug activity.

Robinson said the man who ran from the store then pulled a gun from his waistband, pointing it in the direction of the two officers. One of the officers shot him upon perceiving the situation as an imminent, lethal threat.

[ ALSO READ: Argument leads to double shooting in Gastonia, police say ]

Police said no officers were hurt.

The victim, who was identified as 33-year-old Tim Moore, was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Police said his injuries are not life-threatening and he was awake and alert at the hospital.

Moore is being charged with possession of a firearm by felon, resist, delay, obstruct, and carrying a concealed weapon, police said.

“It just sound like gunshots, ‘pop, pop,’” said Moore’s friend, Denisha Jones. “It was real quick.”

Jones said it all happened so fast. She said she saw Moore run from police officers and grab his weapon.

“You see things like this on the news, TV every day but you don’t expect for it to happen feet from you,” she said.

A gun and a magazine were found at the scene, Robinson said.

“This is a complex investigation, as as every case that we work has the potential to be,” he said. “And I can assure you we’ll be here on scene accountable to the community, as we always are.”

City Councilman Malcolm Graham said everyone has a role to play in the fight against crime, including businesses in the area.

“We got to make sure that the small business owners who reside in the corridor allow police to police their lots when they’re open and when they’re not, we got to crack down on open-air drug sales,” Graham said.

Robinson said it was not a 911 call that brought officers to the scene, but the officers were patrolling the area because it’s known for violence and suspected drug activity. He said the officers were conducting “self-initiated” police activity.

[ ALSO READ: Violence prevention program in west Charlotte creates positive results ]

The State Bureau of Investigation is looking into the shooting and CMPD is conducting an internal investigation. Per standard protocol, the officer who shot Moore has been put on administrative leave.

‘He needs mental health, he don’t need jail’

His family said Moore struggles with his mental health. His aunt said it’s a battle he’s faced his whole life.

“He needs mental health, he don’t need jail,” Wanda Moore said.

Regardless of whether he struggles with his mental health, Robinson said that doesn’t change how an officer responds when they consider their life to be in danger.

“I wish we had the luxury of whether to know everybody’s history when we deal with them,” Robinson said. “We go with immediate action and what is occurring at that time.”

“I can tell you, I don’t know anybody who would say having a gun pointed at them is a time to stop and say, ‘hey, tell me what your mental capacity is.’ It just doesn’t work like that,” he added.

The area where the shooting happened is highly trafficked with regular patrols by Metro Division officers. Moore’s aunt said they should have recognized him, and said they knew he had challenges.

[ ALSO READ: How a west Charlotte neighborhood is cleaning up its air ]

“I know all the police know my nephew. They talk to him every day,” she said.

Community activists agree.

“He is not unfamiliar in these corridors,” said Lucille Puckett with Take Back Our Hoods. “He is known, and every officer here that walked this beat should have known him, known his history, known his background.”

Jacqueline Lewis is the founder of anti-violence group Angels of No Mercy that works on that corridor.

“This is getting out of control,” she said.

She wants the police chief and district attorney to meet with anti-violence groups and Beatties Ford Road residents to discuss how police deal with people struggling with their mental health.

“If they are not going to be able to talk to a person with a mental health issue without shooting, what good is it?” Lewis asked.

Moore was given a $60,000 secured bond during his first court appearance.

He has two pending charges already of communicating threats and assault with a deadly weapon. They stem from a Sept, 28, 2022 incident where he’s accused of charging at a victim with a knife in his hand after telling her he would kill her.

(WATCH BELOW: ‘Find better resolutions to disagreements’: CMPD investigating northwest Charlotte deadly shooting)