Craig Patterson, the sheriff’s deputy in Arlington County, Va., who allegedly shot and killed PBS NewsHour shuttle driver Julian Dawkins May 22 while off duty, was arrested and charged with murder late Thursday night.
Patterson will be held without bond, according to WJLA-TV, Washington, D.C.’s ABC affiliate. He had been on the force for 17 years and was placed on unpaid administrative leave after the shooting. Dawkins’ mother told the station, “I feel like justice has been served.”
The Washington Post also reported that Patterson initially told 911 operators that Dawkins threatened him with a knife. But the only knife police found was still folded closed in Dawkins’ pocket, prosecutors said during Patterson’s arraignment today.
Dawkins was 22 when he was shot, and had been working for the NewsHour since June 2010. Many NewsHour staffers will be attending his funeral today, and Washington Week host Gwen Ifill is expected to speak at the ceremony.
UPDATE: Here are Ifill’s comments from today’s service.