Deaf North Carolina man fatally shot by state trooper during traffic stop

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A driver shot and killed by a North Carolina state trooper following a brief pursuit was hearing and speech impaired, a police report says.

The report by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police provides no other details on the impairment of the 29-year-old driver, identified by the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) as Daniel Kevin Harris.

The incident began about 6:15 p.m. Thursday when a state trooper tried to pull over a vehicle for speeding on Interstate 485, police said in a news release. The driver led authorities on a brief pursuit before stopping, according to the release.

READ MORE: Florida police shoot black man with his hands up as he tries to help autistic patient

Officials said that’s when the driver got out of his car and an encounter took place between the driver and the trooper. The trooper fired a shot. The driver died at the scene.

Harris’ brother Sam Harris, who is also deaf, told NBC that he has been in a similar situation with police before.

“I pulled over and within a few seconds the officer is at my window with his weapon drawn and in my face. I motioned to him. I’m deaf, I’m deaf!” he said. “If the officer had known that he [Daniel] was deaf, it would have ended differently.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I pulled over and within a few seconds the officer is at my window with his weapon drawn and in my face. I motioned to him. I'm deaf, I'm deaf!" he said. "If the officer had known that he [Daniel] was deaf, it would have ended differently."

The SBI identified the trooper as Jermaine Saunders. Highway patrol officials said in a news release that he was placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure after an officer-involved shooting.

SBI spokeswoman Audria Bridges said in an email that agents will interview Saunders next week. The SBI report doesn’t mention that Harris is impaired, and Bridges didn’t respond when asked in email if the impairment was a factor in the shooting.

Harris’ family wrote online that they hope his death will help create change in better training for law enforcement officers as well as a new system for vehicle registration.

“We hope to change the DMV system by requiring states to set up a ‘DEAF’ alert to appear when law enforcement look up a car’s license plate. With this change, Daniel will be a hero in our deaf community.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We hope to change the DMV system by requiring states to set up a 'DEAF' alert to appear when law enforcement look up a car's license plate. With this change, Daniel will be a hero in our deaf community."

His family wrote that Harris was unarmed at the time of his death. He leaves behind a four-year-old son.

— with files from Jenny Sung