Bodyworn camera footage of the fatal police shooting of Haley Rodriguez will be released to the public this week, Gates Police Chief Robert Long said Tuesday.
The department had been performing all necessary redactions to the footage, as well as allowing the state Attorney General’s Office and Monroe County Sheriff’s Office to perform their preliminary investigations, Long said in a phone interview.
A spokesperson for the Attorney General’s Office told WXXI News last week that the Police Department was clear to release the video at its discretion. The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately return requests for comment.
Rodriguez, 27, was shot dead in the early morning hours of Sunday, Oct. 4. A Gates police officer allegedly found her walking in the middle of Spencerport Road, holding what appeared to be a revolver. Police say Rodriguez raised the object toward the officer, who opened fire. The interaction allegedly lasted about 20 seconds. Rodriguez died later that night at Strong Memorial Hospital.
At a news conference last week, Long initially referred to the object as a revolver. When questioned, he clarified it was a replica revolver. Rodriguez’s adoptive brother, Justin Wright, told WXXI News he thought the object was a novelty lighter he had gifted her.
Long reiterated Tuesday that the item was a replica gun, and “definitely not” a lighter. He said he plans to release photos of the object along with the bodyworn camera footage.
