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Video: Texas officer fired after shooting teenager outside McDonald’s

SAN ANTONIO, Texas — A police officer who fired multiple shots at a teenager in a car over the weekend was fired by the department, which also released video of the incident.

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The San Antonio Police Department released video from the officer’s body camera that showed the incident outside a McDonald’s on Saturday night. The video, which is narrated by Alyssa Campos, the department’s training commander, begins with a statement saying: “As of this publication, the officer is not employed by the San Antonio Police Department. His employment was terminated after review of the incident.”

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In the video’s narration, Campos says the officer was called to the McDonald’s for a disturbance. As the officer was gathering information from witnesses at the scene, the officer noticed a car in the parking lot that had him during a traffic stop the day before. In the narration, Campos says, “This vehicle was not the subject of the disturbance call.”

Believing the car may be stolen, the officer approached the vehicle while calling for backup. The video shows the officer approach the vehicle and open the door and order the driver out of the car. The driver then put the vehicle into reverse and tried to flee, hitting the officer with the door of the vehicle. The officer opened fire on the car as the driver reversed and then drove out of the parking lot.

“There is nothing I can say in defense of that officer’s actions that night,” Chief William McManus told WOAI.

The officer, identified as James Brennand, was a probationary officer who had only been on the force for seven months, SAPD told KSAT. Officers are on probation for one year after graduation from the police academy, the station reported.

Police said the driver, 17-year-old Eric Cantu, and his passenger, a 17-year-old female, were found approximately a block away. Cantu was hit by bullets and was taken to a hospital in critical condition, WOAI reported. His passenger was not hurt.

Brennand was hit in the legs by the car’s door and was treated at the scene, WOAI reported.