Jury Recommends Death Penalty for Man Who Killed Tulsa Police Officer and Injured Another

After deliberating for 3 hours Wednesday evening, a Tulsa County jury sentenced David Ware to death for murdering Tulsa Police Sergeant Craig Johnson during a June 2020 traffic stop.

Ware was in the courtroom and he showed no emotion… just looked straight ahead.

Prosecutors ended their closing arguments by telling the jury “today is about accountability. This isn’t the first time David Ware got violent with police, but it needs to be the last.”

Then they asked the jury to sentence Ware to death.

Prosecutors apologized to the jury today for all of the graphic videos they’ve had to watch and the things they’ve had to hear during the trial. They said these are things they may never get out of their heads.

Prosecutors argued Ware didn’t just shoot the officers, he shot them both in the head, then ran away and left them to die.

They said everyone is here because of the string of bad choices Ware made.

Prosecutors said Ware “shot and killed a dad, he put three bullets in a dad.” They said even through Ware now has a child and wants a relationship with her, they said that ship has already sailed because of the choices Ware made.

#On June 29, 2020, Sgt. Johnson and Officer Zarkeshan pulled over David Ware during a traffic stop. They said he refused to get out of the car, even after being tased and pepper-sprayed.

#Then as the officers were trying to pull Ware from his car, he opened fire, hitting both officers, killing Sgt. Johnson. Later that day Tulsa Police Chief Wendall Franklin announced that Ware and another man had been arrested. Franklin said after the shooting Ware left the scene with the help of Matthew Hall.