A former police officer from North Carolina was released from custody after being accused of plotting to kill black people in a mass shooting in New Orleans.
Christopher Gillum is no longer facing charges after a Louisiana grand jury in June declined to indict him on a state terrorism charge that could have carried up to a 15-year sentence.
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The development comes after Gillum, a 45-year-old former law enforcement officer from Chapel Hill, was arrested in Florida in April on allegations he planned to travel to a New Orleans festival, carry out a shooting targeting black people, and “then commit suicide by cop.” The FBI and Louisiana State Police were among the law enforcement agencies involved in targeting him.
Authorities said Gillum was wanted in Orleans Parish by the Department of Public Safety and Corrections for terroristic threats. A handgun and about 200 rounds of ammunition were found in Gillum’s hotel room in Florida, officials said. At the time, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office said they were able to locate Gillum using the county’s Flock camera system.
The effort to indict Gillum on Louisiana’s state terrorism charge was complicated due to jurisdictional issues, according to Attorney General Liz Murrill’s office.
“The threat relayed to a family member actually occurred in North Carolina,” spokesman Lester Duhe told the Associated Press. “The defendant never entered the State of Louisiana until after his arrest.”
Gillum had been planning to travel to the Florida Keys “during the same period he would have been suspected to travel to Louisiana,” Duhe added.
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Gillum had a history of self-harm, according to his family. After his release from prison, his family took him to a treatment facility out of state, according to Murrill’s office.
Gillum worked for the Chapel Hill Police Department from 2004 to 2019. He then worked as a police officer in Carolina Beach before moving to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
