Robbinsville – The Graham County sheriff’s deputy who shot and killed a man earlier this month has not yet successfully completed Basic Law Enforcement Training.
Deputy Courtney Wooten shot and killed 31-year-old Mickey Rice following a high-speed chase on June 20. Deputies conducted a traffic stop on a 2005 Nissan Altima registered in Tennessee, which led to a multi-vehicle, high-speed pursuit.
Officials say Rice brandished a weapon during the encounter, prompting Wooten to fire her service pistol. However, Rice’s weapon turned out to be a BB gun.
“It didn’t look like a BB gun,” Graham County Sheriff Jerry Crisp told the Cherokee Scout. “There was nothing about it that looked like a toy. Everybody that looked at it thought it was real until they touched it.”
Crisp said Graham County deputies who are not BLET certified upon being hired are required to successfully complete firearms training with a certified instructor before their first day on the streets. They then must complete a field training program that lasts several weeks.
“As soon as the first BLET school starts, they get into the program and they work some shifts on the weekends,” Crisp said. “That was the case with this officer.”
According to the state’s website, deputies must complete BLET within 12 months of being hired by a sheriff’s department. A spokesperson from the N.C. Sheriffs’ Education & Training Standards Commission confirmed that Wooten has until July 28 to complete the course.
“A deputy sheriff that does not complete a course delivery during the probationary period will no longer be able to perform the duties of a deputy sheriff,” the state’s website says.
The fatal shooting is not the first time Wooten has made headlines in her short law enforcement career. In September, Wooten called for someone to shoot a woman who expressed opposing political views on social media.
“Can someone please put a bullet in this poor girls (sic) head and just do the world a favor??” Wooten wrote on Facebook.
The post caused a backlash of criticism, prompting Wooten and the Graham County Sheriff’s Office to delete their Facebook account. Wooten was reportedly ordered to take sensitivity training following the incident, according to The Southern Scoop.
Wooten, who is married to Graham County sheriff’s Capt. J.J. Wooten, has been placed on paid administrative leave while state officials investigate the shooting.