It’s only been one month since Terence Crutcher and his twin sister, Dr. Tiffany Crutcher, celebrated their 40th birthday. When they were celebrating four decades of life, family and love, the Crutcher family could have never imagined they wouldn’t see their loved one celebrate his 41st. Terence and Tiffany had a tradition, they celebrated their birthday with the same cake.
A Tulsa police officer pulled the trigger on Friday, Sept. 16, 2016, and fatally shot Terence in cold blood. Without question Megyn Kelly, he had his hands up in the air when he was first tasered by Tulsa officer Tyler Turnbough and then shot once by officer Betty Shelby before he died at St. John Medical Center. You can’t argue with the body camera video that was released on Monday, Sept. 19.
Terence was enrolled at Tulsa Community College and pursuing his passion of singing. He was leaving school when his car stalled in the middle of an intersection on Tulsa’s northeast side. Tiffany’s last text from her brother reads, “I love you, and I’m gonna make you proud.”
The health and wellness strategist, financial literacy activist, life coach and motivational speaker tells media, “Ever since I could remember we would have a birthday cake, ‘Happy Birthday Terence and Tiffany,’ every year,” said Dr. Crutcher. “Even though I’ve been in Alabama for a long time they would still get that birthday cake and send me a picture and we’re gonna continue that tradition, our birthday was a tradition.
“I just feel like I’m in a nightmare, really. I just want to wake up and this all be over tomorrow.”
She said in a news conference with attorneys Damario Solomon-Simmons, Melvin C. Hall and civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump at her side, “After watching the video and seeing what actually happened,” Tiffany said. “We asked for facts. We asked for answers, and we clearly got it through the video and we are truly devastated. The entire family is devastated. And, you all want to know who that big bad dude was? That big bad dude was my twin brother. That big bad dude was a father. That big bad dude was a son. That big bad dude was enrolled at Tulsa Community College just wanting to make us proud. That big dad dude loved God. That big bad dude was at church singing with all of his flaws every week. That big bad dude — that’s who he was.”
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