PUEBLO, Colo. – A federal civil rights lawsuit has been filed in the U.S. Federal Court for the District of Colorado by a mother whose son was fatally shot by Pueblo County deputies outside a middle school.
On February 22, 2022, Pueblo County Sheriff’s Deputies received a report of a suspicious male attempting to open car doors at Liberty Point International Middle School. The male, later identified as Richard Ward, was with his mother and her boyfriend to pick up his younger brother from school.
Ward mistakenly got into the wrong car and, after realizing his error, apologized and returned to his mother’s vehicle. Deputy Charles McWhorter arrived on scene and asked for Ward’s identification, which Ward attempted to retrieve from his pocket. However, when McWhorter saw Ward slip something into his mouth, he physically restrained him and demanded to know what it was.
His family says the object he swallowed was an anti-anxiety medication.
During the struggle, McWhorter shot Ward three times in the chest, resulting in his death on the scene. Following an investigation that deemed the shooting justified, the sheriff’s deputies involved in the case were cleared of any criminal charges.
