GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) -- A Greensboro officer's use of deadly force earlier this year was justified, according to a statement released on Tuesday afternoon by the office of Guilford County District Attorney Avery Crump On May 18 around 8:35 a.m., officers were sent to the LeMans at Lawndale Apartments in the area of 3000 block of Lawndale Drive after a 911 call reported a man in the parking lot with a gun. Officer J. Perez arrived in a fully marked Greensboro Police Department Ford Explorer with a GPD insignia and rooftop light bar. Perez was also dressed in the standard GPD uniform with a badge and other markings that identified him as a GPD officer. When he arrived, Perez encountered Gerald Layton Pinckney, 31, in the parking lot of theapartment complex. Pinckney pulled a gun from his rear waistband and got closer to Perez. Perez then began to back away while telling Pinckney multiple times to drop his weapon and stop. When Pinckney continued to get closer to Perez with his gun drawn and then pointedit at Perez, Perez fired twice, hitting Pinckney. Pinckney had a black “Marksman Repeater” brand .177 caliber BB air pistol that was collected. Pinckney was taken to the hospital but died from his injuries. As a result of the investigation, it was determined that Pinckney was the person who called 911, describing himself with a gun in the parking lot of the apartments, which prompted the response from the GPD. The events are fully captured by Perez’s body-worn camera video. Based on the findings presented, Perez’s use of deadly force under these circumstances was justified by both the common law principle of self-defense and by the statutory provisions of NCGS 15A-401(d)(2), which permits the use of deadly force by a law enforcement officer to defend himself or another from what he believes to be the imminent use of deadly force.