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Officer Charged With Voluntary Manslaughter in Lehigh County Shooting

SOUTH WHITEHALL TOWNSHIP, Pa — A police officer is now charged with voluntary manslaughter after shooting and killing a New Jersey man near Allentown. The...

SOUTH WHITEHALL TOWNSHIP, Pa -- A police officer is now charged with voluntary manslaughter after shooting and killing a New Jersey man near Allentown.

The officer reportedly admitted he was wrong when he shot and killed an unarmed man.

Police say Joseph Santos, 44, from New Jersey, was harassing drivers and damaging cars on July 28 in South Whitehall Township after spending the day with family at nearby Dorney Park amusement park.

Police dispatched South Whitehall Township Police Officer Jonathan Roselle to the area and video shows Santos walking towards Roselle's cruiser while officer Roselle told him to get on the ground.

As Santos approached the officer, the cop fired five shots, killing the unarmed man.

At a news conference Tuesday, Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin announced the voluntary manslaughter charge, claiming the officer was also armed with a baton, pepper spray, and a Taser stun gun, but instead chose deadly force.

"While it is true that Mr. Santos failed to comply with the officer's legitimate order to get down on the ground, there's no objective showing that Officer Roselle was in danger of imminent bodily injury or death," Martin said.

If convicted, Officer Roselle faces up to 20 years in prison. The officer had only been on the force for five months at the time of the shooting.

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