There are a lot of questions surrounding the deadly shooting of a 61-year-old Laurel County, Kentucky, man this week by police officers who say they were there to serve a search warrant.
The man's neighbors believe they went to the wrong home.
"I heard five shots," says a neighbor, who does not want to be identified. "At least five shots. Woke me up. I was laying on the couch."
Neighbors are still in disbelief and looking for answers as to why London, Kentucky, Police were at the door of Doug Harless on the night of December 23.
"My wife looked out the back door and said, 'Doug's house is all lit up.' At that time, we had seen several cop cars up and down the road and I contacted his daughter. She sent her husband out here to find out that her dad was deceased. The cops had shot him," a neighbor said.
London Police say they were attempting to execute a search warrant at a home on Vanzant Road in Laurel County. In a press release, officers say Harless pointed a gun at officers, and that's when an officer opened fire. Harless died as a result.
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Neighbors say Harless was a victim, not a criminal.
Carl Merritt and his wife live just across the road and caught the shooting on their surveillance camera.
"It shows on the camera that there were police officers on his porch and they announced that they were there," said Merritt. "They banged and banged and banged until they finally made their way through the man's door and with not even making it completely through the door, they shot him. I mean it was just that quick."
Merritt says Kentucky State Police now has that surveillance footage.
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Family and friends of Harless, as well as the community, are looking for justice.
"He was a very quiet, humble person," saod Merritt. "Stayed to himself, never bothered nobody. For something like that to happen to that poor man, it hurts me really. To think that somebody like that, especially in my backyard, being shot, you know? In his own home."
"My office will closely follow the investigation being conducted by the Kentucky State Police. My heart goes out to everyone affected by this incident. The family and friends of the individual remain in our thoughts and prayers as well as the officers involved," said London Mayor Randall Weddle. "I want to remind everyone that this is an open investigation, so I am limited in what I can say at this time. Let's allow the Kentucky State Police to thoroughly investigate this situation."
This article was written by Lauren Minor for Scripps News Lexington.
