Chavis Carter

Twenty-one-year-old Chavis Carter died from a gunshot wound to the head while handcuffed in the back of a Jonesboro police vehicle in July 2012.

What happened

Jonesboro police stopped a vehicle carrying Chavis Carter in July 2012, detained him on an outstanding warrant, searched him twice and placed him in the rear of a patrol car. Officers subsequently found Carter with a gunshot wound to his head while he was handcuffed. Police said they had failed to discover a hidden gun and asserted he shot himself in the vehicle. His mother and attorney disputed that explanation, questioning how he could have reached and fired a weapon while restrained and how it had escaped the searches. Relatives demanded additional video, forensic evidence and an independent accounting of what happened inside the car.

Investigation & findings

The Arkansas medical examiner ruled the death a suicide, relying on autopsy and investigative materials. The family's attorney publicly challenged the completeness of that determination and the police narrative. The official classification is documented but not uncontested.

What happened

Investigation & findings

Sources & records