Florida movie theater shooting suspect Curtis Reeves Jr. won’t be released from jail, but a surveillance video of the incident has.
The former cop, 71, has been charged with second degree murder in the fatal shooting of Chad Oulson, 43, in a Tampa, Fla., movie theater on January 13 after they argued about Oulson’s texting.
As the confrontation continued prior to a matinee showing of Lone Survivor , Oulson reportedly threw his popcorn at the suspect, which allegedly prompted Reeves to pull out a.380 semiautomatic pistol and fire.
The presiding judge denied Reeves’ request for bail on Friday after a two-day court hearing.
After he was arrested, Reeves told police that he was afraid Olson “was going to kick my ass” and that “it scared the crap out of me.” He also reportedly claimed that if he was 20 years younger he would have been more inclined to grapple with Olson instead of pulling a gun.
Prosecutors claimed in court that Reeves made up the self-defense angle and that he shot Oulson “in cold blood with no justification.”
The surveillance video embedded below, which presumably will be enhanced for the upcoming trial (assuming the case doesn’t get resolved on a plea before then) was shown in Judge Pat Siracusa’s courtroom during the bail hearing: “The most dramatic moment in court was the playing of video taking inside the theater. The grainy infrared footage shows Reeves in the very corner of the frame. He is seen getting out of his seat, then returning. Moments later, something comes at him from out of the frame. Then Reeves suddenly points something and others in the theater react to the apparent shooting. The defense also introduced their own version of the video which, they claimed, showed a cell phone coming out of Oulson’s hand and hitting Reeves.”
Retired Tampa police captain Curtis Reeves is due back in court on March 12.
Watch the Florida movie theater shooting surveillance video: