BATON ROUGE, La. (WGNO) — Newly released body cam video of a confrontation between a driver and a Louisiana State Trooper on I-10 in Baton Rouge, shows the driver walking toward the trooper, begging to be killed.
The incident occurred Dec. 8, 2022, and Louisiana State Police released the video Tuesday (Jan. 10).
The video is a montage of several Troopers’ body cam and dashboard footage, assembled by the State Police in a “Critical Incident Briefing Video” (CIBV). Parts of the CIBV are narrated by State Police Spokeswoman, Trooper Melissa Matey.
In the CIBV, an unidentified Trooper pulls over a driver on I-10 near the Washington Street exit. After telling the driver he was “swerving” and asking for his identification, the Trooper walks back to his patrol car. The driver, later identified as Jose Reza-Navarro of Spring, TX, pulls away.
A chase ensues, and Reza-Navarro’s car strikes several vehicles on the interstate. Eventually, Reza-Navarro stops the car, and gets out. The Trooper, with his gun drawn, tells Reza-Navarro to stop and show his hands.
The exchange grows tenser, as Reza-Navarro refuses to follow the Trooper’s commands, and instead, repeatedly yells at the Trooper to “kill” him.
Ultimately, the Trooper shoots Reza-Navarro, fatally wounding him. As several troopers try to bandage Reza-Navarro’s wound, he continues asking them to kill him, saying several times: “Just let me die, please.”
After Reza-Navarro’s death, the LSP received a search warrant for his car, where they say they found 83 kilos of cocaine in suitcases, with an estimated street value of 2.5 million dollars.
An excerpt of the CIBV is above. You can find the full CIBV on the LA State Police website, here.
Viewer discretion is advised.
Stay up to date with the latest news, weather and sports by downloading the WGNO app on the Apple or Google Play stores and by subscribing to the WGNO newsletter.