Funeral service for slain Memphis police officer being held Thursday

Officer Sean Bolton saw an illegally parked auto, pulled up in front of it and shined his spotlight.

ANTIOCH, Tenn. (AP) – A man with “significant” psychological issues who was armed with a hatchet and pellet gun unleashed a volley of pepper spray at audience members inside a movie theater Wednesday before being fired at by a police officer and shot dead by a SWAT team as he tried to escape out a back door, police said.

“We’re representing the state of Tennessee and the prosecution of Tremaine Wilbourn“, Henderson said. Bolton approached the auto, Wilbourn got out of the Mercedes and the two men got into a struggle, police said. Bolton died at a hospital. Wilbourn and the driver of the Mercedes ran away, and a neighbor used Bolton’s radio to notify police about the shooting, police said.

Wilbourn allegedly shot Officer Sean Bolton several times when Bolton “interrupted” a drug deal on Saturday.

The driver later turned himself in and was released without charges. Officers found about 1.7 grams of marijuana in the vehicle, Armstrong said. But, she says, Wilbourn told the officer that he couldn’t because his arms were restrained. Wilbourn was sentenced to more than 10 years in federal prison and released on probation in July 2014.

Earlier Sunday, police officers wearing protective vests descended on an apartment complex in southeast Memphis, about three miles from the scene of the shooting.

The officer was responding to a call about a potential prowler at an area home.

Memphis police spokeswoman Karen Rudolph said that she did not want to “entertain that comment” and that the evidence will speak for itself.

“The men and women in blue have certain rules of engagement that they have to follow, but at any given minute in a 24-hour day they’re dealing with folks who have no rules of engagement”, Wharton said. Bolton was a former Marine who served in Iraq. He joined the department in 2010.

During the church’s morning service, Mendoza asked worshippers to pray for the Bolton family. He said a fingerprint taken at the theater matched that from his arrest.