The trial of former Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Deputy Eddie Duran began today, regarding the killing of Senior Airman Roger Fortson inside Fortson’s apartment. Duran is charged with manslaughter for the 23-year-old’s death, which occurred in 2024. 

Duran pleaded not guilty by reason of self defense to the charge, so the prosecution must attempt to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Duran was not justified in shooting Fortson. 

Jury selection proceeded through Monday, and many trial attendees, including the victim’s family, wore disapproving looks or shook their heads as the selected jurors entered the room today. 

The seven-person jury contains six men and one woman, all of whom appear to be white. Each juror has sworn to reach a verdict using objective judgment, and without allowing their emotions to affect their thinking. 

Opening Statements 

The prosecution argued that Duran did not adequately identify himself as law enforcement before opening fire on Fortson. State Attorney Mark Alderman said evidence will show Duran shot Fortson “almost immediately” once Fortson opened his apartment door, and did not have reason to believe his own life was in imminent danger. 

The defense, however, said during opening statements that Duran was simply following training from the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office and believed he was responding to a domestic disturbance call — though deputies later learned Fortson had been alone in his apartment. 

Defense Attorney Michael Flowers also told the court that Duran does plan to testify and relay what happened on May 3, 2024, the day Fortson died, from his perspective.

Prosecution’s Argument 

The State brought forth Dr. Danielle Armstrong, Florida’s District 1 medical examiner, to the stand first. Armstrong performed Fortson’s autopsy, and testified that he died from multiple gunshot wounds. Armstrong said she’d ruled his death a homicide. 

Next, prosecutors called Charles Johnson to the stand, who said he became one of Fortson’s closest friends while the two were stationed at Hurlburt Field. Johnson had been with Fortson on the day of his death, and he provided clarity regarding the day’s timeline. According to Johnson’s testimony:

• Fortson had come to Johnson’s apartment that afternoon, and they spent a couple of hours hanging out and playing video games. 
• At one point while they were hanging out, Fortson got on the phone with his girlfriend, and gave her most of his attention.
• Fortson left Johnson’s apartment, still on the phone, and returned to his own home. 
• About 30 minutes after Fortson left, Johnson received a call from Fortson’s mother, who was “frantic” and repeatedly asked Johnson to “check on [her] baby.” 

After receiving that phone call, Johnson drove to Fortson’s apartment where deputies redirected him to the hospital where Fortson was. Johnson remained at the hospital until he learned Fortson had died later that night. 

So, what happened between Fortson’s time playing video games with his friend, to his death? Prosecutors brought forth Calan Simms, who lived in the apartment unit directly under Fortson’s when the shooting occurred. 

According to Simms’ testimony:

• She didn’t know Fortson personally. 
• On May 3, 2024, she called the front desk at Elan Apartments to report a noise complaint against Fortson’s residence.
• She called in the complaint because she’d heard one male voice and sounds of “things moving around,” and was concerned there may have been a fight going on. 
• She believed the conversation she heard from Fortson’s residence sounded aggressive, and said she heard him say, “I’m sick of you lying behind my back,” “You got me so fucked up,” and other comments through her apartment vent.

The prosecution then played this phone call for the jury. In it, Simms is heard telling front desk staff that she thought her upstairs neighbors were fighting, and she worried things were getting “handsy.” 

The front desk staffer, Keely Rodriguez, told Simms that the apartment staff couldn’t do anything about this, and that it was a police matter. Rodriguez suggested Simms call the police herself, but Simms testified that she didn’t call authorities because the fighting seemed to “simmer down” shortly after her call to apartment staff. 

Instead, Rodriguez called Okaloosa County’s non-emergency line directly after hanging up with Simms. Prosecutors called her to the stand next. 

According to Rodriguez’ testimony:

• She did not attempt to resolve the matter herself, as she felt it could cause safety concerns for apartment staff.
• She called the non-emergency line instead of 911 because she wasn’t sure what was going on inside Fortson’s apartment. 
• Her manager was not at work that day, so Rodriguez could not consult with apartment staff before calling the police. 

In the call recording with Okaloosa County dispatch, Rodriguez is heard telling the operator she’s going to walk by Fortson’s apartment from the ground level. She then tells the operator she can’t hear any fighting, but that she had previously heard someone yelling obscenities, such as “Shut up, bitch,” from an apartment — though she hadn’t been sure at the time whether it was coming from Fortson’s residence. 

When Duran arrived at the scene, Rodriguez directed him to Fortson’s residence. 

It turns out, Fortson was alone inside his apartment, playing video games, on the phone with his girlfriend when Duran first knocked on his door. 

Fortson’s girlfriend, Tytiana Hendrix, took the stand to discuss what she witnessed while on FaceTime with him. 

According to her testimony:

• Her and Fortson called briefly while Fortson was at his friend’s apartment, then they got back on FaceTime when he arrived home. 
• While on FaceTime, Fortson was playing the video game Madden, which was typical for him.
• There was no argument, screaming or swearing while the two were on the phone. Nothing was out of the ordinary.
• Fortson was wearing his gaming headset, with one ear covered and one outside the headset so he could still hear Hendrix.
• Both Hendrix and Fortson thought they heard a knock at the door, but ignored it because they weren’t sure. 
• Shortly after, they heard a second knock that was louder and harsher than the first. Hendrix urged Fortson not to answer the door, as he wasn’t expecting anyone and didn’t know who it could be. 
• Fortson looked through the peephole on his door multiple times, but couldn’t see anyone outside his residence.
• After a third knock, Fortson asked, “Who the fuck is it?” to which he didn’t hear a response. At this time, Fortson went to his room and grabbed his firearm. 

Hendrix said Fortson set his phone down so she could not see what happened next, but she heard a loud “commotion,” and realized Fortson was shot when she heard Duran call it over his police radio. She said she’s never watched the bodycam footage of Duran shooting Fortson, so her testimony is solely based on her own memory. 

Duran’s Bodycam

Prosecutors played the bodycam footage from before, during and after Duran shot Fortson. In the footage:

• Duran approached Fortson’s apartment and listened outside the door before attempting to make contact. 
• Duran knocked once, and moved behind an adjacent wall. There is no answer.
• Duran knocked a second time, and moved behind the wall. There is no answer, and Duran had not yet identified himself.
• Duran knocked a third time and identified himself, shouting “Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Department.”
• Fortson creaks open the door holding his handgun in his right hand, at his side, aimed at the ground.
• Duran fires five shots at him almost immediately. 
• Fortson collapses, and Duran begins yelling at him to put down his gun and stop moving, to which Fortson responds, “I don’t have it [the gun]” while on the floor. 

Less than a minute after Duran fired shots, Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Department’s Ezekial Dixon arrived with Jacob Runge, who was undergoing field training. 

Dixon and Runge both testified, and Runge’s bodycam footage shows what happened after the shooting. 

According to the deputies’ testimonies and bodycam footage: 

• Backup arrived and saw Duran standing in the apartment doorway with his gun drawn, and Fortson lying in the entranceway with apparent gunshot wounds.
• Runge saw a firearm near Fortson’s right hand, which he kicked into the kitchen. 
• Deputies cleared Fortson’s apartment and determined there was no one else inside. 

Once Duran learned Fortson had been alone, we see him on bodycam separating himself and repeating “fuck,” hitting a wall once. 

Deputies on the scene found five bullets fired from Duran’s firearm, and none from Fortson’s. They found no evidence anyone else had been inside the apartment at the time of the shooting.

Prosecution Rests 

Prosecutors called two final witnesses to the stand. 

Lisa Hughey retired from the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office in 2025, and worked in the crime scene investigations unit in 2024. She documented and collected evidence from Duran at the Sheriff’s office on May 4, 2024, the day after the shooting. This evidence included photos of Duran, as well as the firearm, bullets and casings associated with the alleged crime. 

Florida Department of Law Enforcement Special Agent Mark Zagar supervised the investigation into Duran’s use of deadly force and turned in evidence. He said it’s typical for FDLE to investigate officer-involved shootings. 

After Hughey and Zagar testified, the State rested its case and court adjourned. 

The trial will resume tomorrow with the defense’s argument, and Flowers said Duran himself will testify.

Mid Bay News will update this page as the trial proceeds.