VIDEO: One killed in third fatal shooting at or near Coyote Jack's; police release body cam footage

Chattanooga police have released body camera footage of officers' response to Sunday morning's fatal shooting outside a downtown nightclub after several social media posts accused police of shooting the victim and called for the killing of police officers.

"You will see one of our officer's body-worn cameras, so you can see exactly what the officers not only faced that night with the situation they were in the middle of, but also what their actions looked like," police Chief David Roddy said.

Brandon Rogers, 19, was shot on the patio of Coyote Jack's nightclub in the 1400 block of Cowart Street at around 2:22 a.m. He was taken to a local hospital where he died shortly after.

During one of at least two Facebook live streams of the incident, someone is heard falsely claiming that police shot the victim. From there, the misinformation spread throughout social media, with some calling for local gangs to unite against the police.

"Da streets got moe artillery then [sic] da CPD," one post partially read.

Roddy said the department wanted to release the video quickly, as it was in the best interest of the community and the department "to get in front of that narrative" and stop the narrative before it continued to spread.

Police officers with the department's regulatory unit were checking on several late-night events in the area - something they regularly do on weekends - and found Coyote Jack's had exceeded its maximum occupancy early Sunday morning, Roddy said. It was shut down by police and fire marshals.

The officers asked for additional patrol units to help with the expected increase in pedestrian and vehicle traffic as people exited the nightclub.

As patrons filed out, police were alerted to an altercation just outside the club. Officers went toward the fight when two shots rang out. At least one bullet struck Rogers, who was standing near multiple officers on the club's patio.

"Unfortunately, their proximity didn't [stop the violence]," Roddy said. "But they also immediately took action to try to save [Rogers'] life."

Yet, "for some reason, individuals felt the need to spread this story or this rumor" that police officers shot Rogers.

Body camera footage shows police attempting to apply pressure on the victim's gunshot wound while being repeatedly interrupted by a crowd of people approaching Rogers' body despite being told to back away several times.

Officers are heard directing Rogers and others to crawl toward them. It's part of police officers' training to direct victims to crawl toward them so they can keep an eye on possible threats, Roddy said.

But when it's clear that Rogers in unresponsive, officers move him closer to them, turn him over to begin applying pressure to the wound while radioing for an ambulance to be sent.

Officers did not immediately begin CPR because Rogers initially had a pulse, Roddy said.

A man who said he is either a relative or a friend of Rogers approaches an officer who was aiding Rogers. The officer gets up and tells the man to back up.

"Go sit on that car, and I will check on you, ok?" the officer is heard telling the man. "You're not helping him right now. Go. I gotta help him."

Police hope that the same "energy, the passion that we've seen in individuals believing that a Chattanooga police officer did this, maybe they'll redirect that energy and help us figure out who did it," Roddy said.

Some already are.

"SPEAK UP AND SPEAK OUT," one Facebook post reads. "JUSTICE NEED TO BE SERVE NO MATTER WHO THE SHOOTER IS. WE ARE TO TOO MANY LOSES."

Staff writer Mark Pace contributed to this report.

Contact Rosana Hughes at rhughes@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6327 with tips or story ideas. Follow her on Twitter@HughesRosana.

Upcoming Events