Investigators don't recommend charges in fatal shooting of airman

It was a typical Saturday night at the Truman Gate on Feb. 22, 2025, when their colleague, U.S. Air Force Airman Brion Teel-Scott, was coming back on base and everything went wrong.  

Teel-Scott reportedly tried to enter Kirtland Air Force Base with an expired vehicle registration. Airmen said Teel-Scott became "hostile and uncooperative" and fled on foot across Gibson as several members of his squadron chased him, telling him to surrender.

Teel-Scott took cover behind a car and asked numerous times for the military police officers to call local police, promising to surrender to local law enforcement.

Instead, members of the 377th Security Forces Squadron opened fire, shooting Teel-Scott at least 16 times in a flurry of bullets that killed him just one hour into his 28th birthday. Later, the airmen told local police they had found marijuana under the spare tire in the trunk of his car.

A year after the fatal shooting, a review found that no criminal charges would be filed against the airmen.

"After a thorough review of the evidence, OSTC (Office of Special Trial Counsel) determined that no criminal charges would be preferred against the Security Forces members involved," Eva Blaylock, spokesperson for Kirtland Air Force Base, said in an email. "The case was then referred to the command for further action as appropriate."

Preliminary reports from the men who shot at Teel-Scott provide muddied details of the circumstances that left Teel-Scott dead near an apartment complex across Gibson from Kirtland's Truman Gate. Some of the military police officers said they saw Teel-Scott with a gun, while others said they never saw the firearm but heard the distinct "click" of what they believed was a weapon.

Kirtland has released only limited details to the public or to Teel-Scott's family, something his father said was disrespectful and painful.

"How disrespectful is it to kill my son on his birthday?" said Shawn Scott, father of Teel-Scott. "We have to celebrate his birthday and think of his death on the same day."

Kirtland officials have said Teel-Scott had two nonjudicial punishments under the Uniform Code of Military Justice for cocaine use and for using marijuana on multiple occasions.

He was pending trial by court-martial for charges of domestic violence and dereliction of duty and had requested a discharge under "other than honorable" conditions in lieu of court-martial.

Searching for a complete picture of what happened to his son, Scott has hired a lawyer who has filed a wrongful death petition and the family is preparing to file a wrongful death lawsuit.

While Scott, a Marine veteran and former law enforcement officer, said he still respects the military, his respect for Kirtland and the Air Force has crumbled. 

"You still continue to disrespect the family, you won't answer any questions, you won't be respectful, you won't do the right thing and you damn sure won't display any professionalism," he said, speaking on Kirtland's lack of transparency on the case. 

Taylor Smith, an attorney representing Teel-Scott's family, said Kirtland has withheld information about the investigation into the shooting.

"In a time where we all know that transparency is key in what all of our government officials do, we're completely disappointed in the lack of transparency with Kirtland," Smith said.

"This is a family who's gone through a lot and deserves answers and it shouldn't take this long to have basic questions answered for a family who lost a loved one," he added. "This was just overkill, what happened to Mr. Teel-Scott."

Smith said reports he has received suggest Teel-Scott was not armed during the shooting and that the weapon recovered may not have been his.

The Air Force has not said how many airmen fired at Teel-Scott or how many bullets were fired, if Teel-Scott ever fired his weapon or if any administrative actions were taken against the military police officers. 

In response to multiple questions sent to Kirtland, spokespersons from the base told the Journal to reach out to the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.

"AFOSI’s investigation into this incident has concluded and been provided to the appropriate authorities for their review and consideration," said Trevor Saylor, spokesperson for AFOSI. 

"You may file a Freedom of Information Act request ... to obtain whatever information AFOSI is lawfully allowed to release to you. Please be aware that it is not unusual for federal law enforcement records to be exempt from release for a number of reasons, but AFOSI is committed to making such determinations in accordance with the law."

Scott said the death of his son began due to an expired registration on his car, which quickly turned into a vehicle search where airmen allegedly found at least one bag of marijuana. An autopsy report showed that he had likely smoked marijuana earlier that day.

"Why would my son put baggies of marijuana in a trunk when he has a smellproof backpack?" he asked. "Why has that backpack been in my house since the Fourth of July when the investigation wasn't complete?"

Scott believes his son, who was Black, was the target of hazing and bullying and believes the shooting was racially motivated. 

"They murdered my son in cold blood," he said. "He was a Black man and they were all white shooters. They think that they're being protected and everything else because they're in the military, but nobody is above the law." 

Scott said he will continue to search for a complete account of his son's death. 

"It's not over," he said. "It's far from over."

Nakayla McClelland covers crime and breaking news. Reach her at nmcclelland@abqjournal.com or at 505-823-3857.