Nashville police release 911 calls of shooting that left three injured, gunman dead
The Metro Nashville Police Department released 911 calls following the shooting at Smile Direct Club that left three people injured
The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department released 911 calls, surveillance video, and body camera footage of a shooting Tuesday morning at a Smile Direct Club warehouse that left three people injured and the gunman, 22-year-old Antonio King, dead.
King, who started working at Smile Direct Club in June after an earlier stint from late 2019 to early 2020, went to the manufacturing facility around 6:00am and fired more than 20 rounds from a .45 pistol into the building, police say.
Footage of the incident shows King reloading a handgun multiple times as he engages in a shootout with security guards.
One of the security guards, 46-year-old Johnny Hardin, was taken to the hospital in critical condition, police reported. Another security guard, 66-year-old Carlton Watson, remained in a stable condition Tuesday, while the facility's manager, 54-year-old Thomas Abbott, was treated at a hospital and released.
A spokesman for Nashville police said that the department believes King was also injured during the shootout with security.
Police say that Antonio King, 22, fired more than 20 rounds into a Smile Direct Club manufacturing facility before he was shot and killed by police. (Metropolitan Nashville Police Department)
Nashville police released two 911 calls from bystanders who witnessed the shooting.
"I have an active shooter… there is a security officer shot," one of the 911 callers told the dispatcher. "We cleared the office area and we’re trying to clear people in the parking lot. People are seeking shelter in between the vehicles."
After the shootout in front of the building, police tracked King down at a nearby intersection and instructed him to drop his weapon, which he appeared to refuse to do.
"Officers engaged with King on Antioch Pike," Nashville police said. "He refused commands to drop his gun and was fired on as he raised his pistol at police."
This view from Officer Dylan Ramos's body camera shows the intersection that police tracked King to. (Metropolitan Nashville Police Department)
Officers Dylan Ramos and Cherell Kinchloe both fired shots during the confrontation. Nashville police public affairs officer Kristin Mumford said the department is reviewing the shots fired by Officer Kinchloe due to her position behind the other officers.
"The actions of Officer Kinchloe, in firing two shots given the vantage point represented by her video, are under review by the police department," Mumford said in a video released by the department.
Officer Cherell Kinchloe's actions "in firing two shots given the vantage point represented by her video" are under review, police said. (Metropolitan Nashville Police Department)
King's family told WKRN that the suspect was a "quiet, caring, fun loving, and hardworking" man. The "reality of his mental illness has taken us by surprise."
"It is important for us as a community to be aware of how mental illness can manifest itself in our loved ones in friends. In the days that we live in where it is so easy to shame, belittle, berate, and criticize others without knowledge of how they struggle daily," the statement said, according to the local news outlet.
Antonio King, 22, was shot and killed by law enforcement after police said he opened fire at a Smile Direct Club manufacturing facility, injuring three people. (Metropolitan Nashville Police Department)
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Smile Direct Club said in a statement after the shooting that the company is "shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic incident that took place at our manufacturing facility."
"We are grateful for the swift actions taken by our Team Members, security personnel and Metro Nashville Police in responding to, and quickly containing, the situation," the company said in the statement. "The safety of our Team Members is a top priority for the Company, and we maintain strict security protocols and a no weapons policy at all our facilities."