Police Brutality / Individual record
Jordan Javon Edwards
The Washington Post's Fatal Force database records Jordan Javon Edwards in a fatal on-duty police shooting on 2017-04-29 in Balch Springs, TX. Individual circumstances and legal outcome require case-specific review.
- Record ID
- PB-662
- Incident date
- April 29, 2017
- Outcome
- Fatal
- Location
- Balch Springs, TX
- Agency
- Balch Springs Police Department
- Category
- Fatal on-duty police shooting
- Age (reported)
- 15
What happened
Jordan Javon Edwards, 15, was shot and killed by Balch Springs, Texas police Officer Roy Oliver on April 29, 2017, as Jordan rode in a car leaving a house party with his brothers and friends. Police had responded to a disturbance call and gunshots heard nearby; Oliver fired a rifle into the departing car, striking Jordan in the head. Early police descriptions suggested the vehicle was moving aggressively toward officers, but video evidence contradicted important portions of that account. Oliver was dismissed from the department and charged with murder. In August 2018, a Dallas County jury convicted Oliver of murder, and the court sentenced him to 15 years in prison and imposed a $10,000 fine. The Dallas County District Attorney's Office issued an official statement confirming both the conviction and sentence. Jordan's family described him as a strong student and athlete. The murder verdict is an established criminal judgment, not merely an allegation or a settlement.
Investigation & findings
Individual legal and investigative outcome not yet reviewed.
Washington Post Fatal Force v2; 2015–2024
Source record details
- Source incident ID
- 2538
- Race code in source
- B
- Race source method
- not_available
- Gender (source)
- male
- Armed status (source)
- unarmed
- Flee status (source)
- not
- Agency IDs (source)
- 1728
Sources & records
- Primary source
- Additional source
- Methodology and national police killings trackingMapping Police Violence · Dataset/methodology
- Fatal Force v2 — fatal on-duty police shootings, 2015–2024The Washington Post · Dataset