Hall makes bond, joins family in call for more answers in Raleigh police incident

Hall on Tuesday was released on $20,000 secured bond, but family members cautioned him against speaking at a late afternoon press conference.

“I told him to be quiet. I told him,” Hall’s mother, Doris Tomberlin, said.

Family members said they are pleased that Hall had been released from jail, but are still unsatisfied with the answers they’ve received from Raleigh police in regards to what led up to the incident.

“When I saw the video, and I saw the anger in him, I didn’t recognize that person because I didn’t know that person,” Hall’s sister said of his behavior in the videos.

“Everyone that has all of the answers, other than what was in [Frederick’s] mind won’t allow us to see the other stuff, but they were also holding hostage his mind,” Hall’s brother, Douglas Hall said.

Activists have questioned why officers trained in crisis intervention were not sent to the scene because Hall has a mental disability. They also claimed the officers’ use of batons to hit Frederick Hall went against a written policy that says blows should be concentrated on the hands, arms and legs when possible.

“When will our Raleigh Police Department be held responsible for the blows to this man’s spine that could have caused serious injury?” community activist Wanda Hunter said.

Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said Monday that the officers would not be charged in connection with the incident.

"While this incident is unfortunate and troubling to watch, law enforcement officers are authorized under the law to use force to stop an attack when necessary," Freeman said in a statement. "In this case, officers twice attempted to subdue Mr. Hall by using a Taser prior to using other force. The actions of the officers involved in this incident do not rise to the level of criminal assault."

Activists said they have invited Mayor Nancy McFarlane and Raleigh Police Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown to visit the community to work on resolutions and plan to attend a City Hall meeting on Sept. 4 to call for change.

“As we have continued to say over and over again, it has to stop. This is not an attack on our law enforcement, it is not an attack on our judicial system, but it is an attack on police brutality, it is an attack on fairness that our community is not receiving at the moment,” said Diana Powell, executive director of Justice Served N.C.

In the meantime, Tomberlin, who is scheduled to undergo surgery Wednesday, said she is happy to be able to hold her son for the first time since the incident.

“When I lay down on that operating table, I have laid eyes on my child, and I know he’s alright, and if by chance I don’t get off that operating table tomorrow, my soul is satisfied,” she said.