Mother doesn't blame Montgomery County deputies for son's death

10 News speaks exclusively with Tincher's mother Sunday

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Va.UPDATE

Michelle Tincher said she was standing near the deputy who fired shots at her son, Taylor Tincher, on Saturday in their home on Walton Road.

“Watching them fire their guns is a vision I'll never get out of my head,” Michelle Tincher said.

While the devastated mother wouldn't share exactly what lead to the shooting, she said her son had been diagnosed with depression. 

Tincher said she called 911 because he needed medical attention.

“I was there to help my son, Taylor, because he called for me to come get him. I called 911 which is why the officers were there. Taylor happened to have a firearm,” Tincher said.

While Taylor's parents, along with his best friend, Kallebe Robbins, remain in shock, Michelle Tincher said she does not blame the deputies for what happened to her son.

“I don't hold them accountable. I don't hold them at fault. I find that they did as they were trained to do, that if a person is coming at you with a gun and they won't put it down, that it is their job to shoot them."

While Virginia State Police has not released the name of the person who was shot, family and friends of Taylor Tincher are remembering him fondly.

“We rode dirt bikes all the time. That was his favorite thing to do,” Robbins said.

“He was the boy who always had his friends' backs,” Michelle Tincher said.

UPDATE

10 News spoke exclusively with the mother of the 18-year-old shot and killed by Montgomery County deputies Saturday.

State Police have now identified him as Taylor Tincher.

ORIGINAL STORY

Authorities continue their investigation after an 18-year-old was shot and killed by deputies Saturday.

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said its deputies responded to a call for a disturbed individual in the 900 block of Walton Road in Christiansburg just before 8 a.m.

Deputies said when they made entry into the home, Taylor K.E. Tincher, 18, produced a gun and ignored their commands to put it down.

As Tincher began advancing toward deputies, they fired at him, the Sheriff’s Office said.

Tincher was taken to the New River Valley Medical Center, where he died just before 10 a.m.

The county Sheriff's Office said the deputies involved will stay on paid administrative leave while the investigation continues.