'This was an execution': Slain man's attorneys blast Elizabeth City shooting, limited release of body-cam video
On Tuesday, the family of Andrew Brown Jr. and their attorneys will hold a news conference to release the results of an independent autopsy the family had commissioned after Pasquotank County deputies shot Brown in the back while trying to serve a warrant on April 21.
Posted — UpdatedAttorneys for the family of a man killed last week by Pasquotank County deputies on Monday called the shooting "an execution," saying the 20 seconds of video from a deputy's body-worn camera that had been released showed the man posed no threat to deputies and was shot in the back of the head while trying to get away.
Deputies were trying to serve a warrant on Andrew Brown Jr. last Wednesday to search his home in Elizabeth City and his car as part of a drug investigation when he was shot and killed.
After obtaining the needed court order to release video recorded by deputies' body-cameras, Pasquotank County authorities showed video to Brown's family members and one attorney on Monday afternoon.
"Let's be clear. This was an execution," attorney Chantel Cherry-Lassiter, who was the only one of the family's attorneys allowed to view the video.
Other attorneys came to a similar conclusion.
"One body camera, 20 seconds and an execution," Bakari Sellers said.
The attorneys blasted the limited amount of video provided, noting at least eight deputies and several sheriff's office vehicles were at the scene when Brown was shot, so there should be several other views available.
"Twenty seconds is not transparency," attorney Harry Daniels said.
"They determined what was pertinent," attorney Ben Crump said. "We want all of it, because that's what transparency is. Let us see it with our own eyes. We don't need you to interpret it for us."
Cherry-Lassiter said she watched the 20-second clip repeatedly to take notes about what it showed:
- A deputy drove up and blocked Brown, who was in his car, in the driveway.
- Brown had his hands on the steering wheel as several deputies ran up, guns drawn, demanding that he show his hands.
- Several shots were fired at Brown, who kept his hands on the steering wheel.
- Brown then tried to get away from the gunfire and backed out around the sheriff's office vehicle.
- Deputies yelled at him to stop and continued firing.
- Brown's car ran into a tree down the street from his home, and deputies ran up on the car, continuing to fire shots.
Cherry-Lassiter said she lost count of how many shots were fired, adding that she doesn't know whether any were fired before the 20 seconds of video started.
"My dad got executed trying to save his life," Brown's son, Khalil Ferebee said. "It ain't right at all."
Sheriff Tommy Wooten defended his office in a video posted on Facebook Monday evening.
"This tragic incident was quick and over in less than 30 seconds," Wooten said. "Body cameras are shaky and sometimes hard to decipher. They only tell part of the story."
According to the application for the search warrant, investigators had audio and video recordings of Brown selling crack cocaine and methamphetamine to a confidential informant in March. One sale was at his home, and the other was in Dare County, the warrant application states.
Pasquotank County authorities said Brown had a history of resisting arrest.
Three deputies resigned in the wake of the shooting, and another seven have been placed on leave, pending the outcome of a State Bureau of Investigation review of the shooting.
Chief Deputy Daniel Fogg said in the Facebook video that that investigation should be allowed to be completed before people rush to judgment.
"It is not appropriate for us to make any decision about what happened in this tragic incident until we get all of the facts – not just a video perspective but the other evidence," Fogg said. "We continue to ask for patience as we follow the important process."
The latest delay came Monday morning, when the sheriff's office needed more time to redact the faces of deputies seen in the video.
"Redactions, or altering the video, always give concern," Daniels said before the video was released, "[but] we should still have the substance of what happened."
"What do you want? Video," was the call-and-response chant outside the courthouse Monday afternoon when Brown's family was finally allowed inside to see the footage.
"We just want to see the tape and see what happened," Daniels said. "We want to see what happened to him to hold those accountable for shooting this unarmed man in the back."
The mayor of Elizabeth City declared a state of emergency Monday morning, authorizing city government "to take whatever steps necessary to protect life and property, public infrastructure, and provide such emergency assistance deemed necessary to preserve public safety."
Some deputies from Halifax County have been called in to help Elizabeth City Police and the Pasquotank County Sheriff's Office in case of unrest.
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