Colton Floren, 24, was killed in January 2024 after being shot by a Pineville police officer.
PINEVILLE, N.C. — The Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Office announced Thursday that no criminal charges will be filed against the Pineville police officer who fatally shot a man outside a bar in January.
District Attorney Spencer B. Merriweather III concluded that Officer Kyle McClure acted in self-defense when he shot 24-year-old Colton Maxwell Floren in the parking lot of Tavern 51 on Jan. 11.
“The available evidence in this case leaves the State wholly unlikely to prove to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt that Officer McClure did not act in defense of himself or others,” Merriweather wrote in a letter to the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.
According to the DA’s investigation, Floren had brandished a firearm inside the establishment during an altercation with another patron who subsequently called 911. Surveillance video confirmed Floren displayed a gun after the patron declined his offer to buy a drink.
“He just started yelling, yelling crazy, and he pulled a gun out on me,” the caller told a 911 dispatcher in January. When asked what Floren said, the caller replied, “He’ll kill me.”
The investigation revealed that Floren had hidden his Canik 9mm handgun between a trash can and a pillar outside the restaurant before police arrived — a fact unknown to responding officers. Dispatchers had informed Officer McClure that the suspect potentially possessed three firearms and had threatened to “shoot up the place.”
Body-worn camera footage showed that when McClure confronted Floren in the parking lot, he issued multiple commands for Floren to stop and show his hands. Despite these repeated orders, Floren continued walking toward the officer.
“Officer McClure commanded the decedent to ‘stop’ five times in succession while the decedent continued to walk steadily toward Officer McClure without slowing,” the DA’s letter stated.
Video evidence showed Floren initially raised his arms but briefly lowered them before raising them again while still advancing toward McClure. The officer then fired twice, striking Floren in the chest.
An autopsy revealed Floren had methamphetamine, cocaine, THC, and alcohol in his system at the time of his death.
McClure, who joined the Pineville Police Department in 2021 after working for G4S Special Police and serving in the North Carolina National Guard, told investigators he believed he had no choice but to fire his weapon.
“Officer McClure stated that he had to make a decision, and he believed that if he did not fire his weapon, the decedent was going to take his gun and assault him or others,” according to the DA’s letter.
Both Officers McClure and Felix Soto, who arrived just after the shooting and helped render aid, had been placed on administrative leave while the investigation was conducted. The Pineville Police Department has not yet announced when the officers will return to active duty.
The State Bureau of Investigation led the criminal inquiry, while the Pineville Police Department conducted its own internal investigation to determine if department policies were followed. The results of that internal review have not yet been released.
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