The 23-year-old Chattanooga man shot by Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office deputies and charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder during a traffic stop last month had his hearing rescheduled Tuesday.
Ta’Darius McDaniel is now due in court Jan. 15 after his lawyer asked General Sessions Judge Gary Starnes to reschedule the hearing. McDaniel’s lawyer, Philip Duval, declined to comment outside the courtroom.
(READ MORE: ‘I was already shot’: Defendant describes Hamilton County deputies opening fire)
McDaniel’s mother, Tomorrow Green, sat in the gallery’s first row and attempted to record the hearing and allegedly take photos of officers on a smart tablet before court officers confiscated the electronic devices.
When rescheduling the case, Duval told the judge that he had several cases. Starnes replied that he had a lot of cases as well.
Hearing rescheduled for man shot by Hamilton County deputies
“This is an important case,” Duval said.
Starnes said he could move cases around, but the McDaniel case needs to be brought before the court. The judge then asked for the defendant to be brought in, and McDaniel’s mother peered around the prosecutor’s table, searching for the best view.
“Bring him, please let me see him,” she whispered.
Court deputies brought McDaniel out before the judge. He had his right arm in a blue sling.
The court agreed on the new date, and then the judge was notified that Green had allegedly attempted to record officers in the room. Starnes said Green should have known better.
She apologized to the court, and Starnes said he would see her back at 8:30 a.m. Jan. 15.
In an interview after the proceedings, Green said her emotions were all over the place, and it was devastating for her to see the deputies who she alleged shot McDaniel. The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office did not answer emailed questions asking whether the deputies present were involved in the shooting.
“The question is, how many times have people been shot on the sheriff’s watch in that vicinity there?” Green said.
State investigators are also probing another Highway 58 fatal shooting by law enforcement in July. A Rossville man succumbed to 18 gunshot wounds after Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office deputies and Chattanooga Police Department officers shot him during a takedown operation at a combined McDonald’s and Circle K.
McDaniel was shot Nov. 22 after deputies located him in a reportedly stolen vehicle during a Highway 58 traffic stop. He said by phone from the Hamilton County Jail that his foot came off the brake moments before two deputies shot him six times at a Speedway gas station shortly after midnight.
(READ MORE: Man killed by Hamilton County deputies after refusing commands, displaying gun)
The arrest report said the deputies were on foot when the vehicle moved toward them, and the officers feared for their lives and fired, striking McDaniel.
Surveillance video obtained by the Chattanooga Times Free Press shows the car reversing and then rolling forward before deputies fired. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is still examining the shooting.
Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp said by phone Monday that she has not yet determined whether the deputies’ actions were justified, and her office has not yet decided whether McDaniel intended to attempt to murder the deputies.
On the arrest report, deputies accused McDaniel of theft of property, two firearm-related felonies and two attempted first-degree murder charges. The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office has not answered emailed questions about the case.
McDaniel had two pending felony charges from a separate case, including aggravated robbery. He pleaded guilty to two firearm-related felonies and evading arrest this year, according to court records.
State investigators do not release the identity of the deputies involved as a matter of policy, and neither the Sheriff’s Office nor the arrest report identified them.
Contact breaking news reporter Mason Edwards at medwards@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6409.