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Law enforcement begins making arrests as protestors defy curfew in Elizabeth City

On Tuesday, the family of Andrew Brown Jr. and their attorneys held a news conference to release the results of an independent autopsy the family had commissioned after Pasquotank County deputies shot Brown while trying to serve a warrant on April 21.

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By
Bryan Mims
, WRAL reporter, & Ryan Bisesi, WRAL multiplatform producer
ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. — Law enforcement arrested at least six protestors in downtown Elizabeth City on Tuesday night. Protestors were arrested for impeding a public highway in violating curfew.

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."

A curfew was in effect for the city from 8 p.m. Tuesday through 6 a.m. Wednesday.

Earlier on Tuesday, the family of Andrew Brown Jr. and their attorneys held a news conference to release the results of an independent autopsy after Pasquotank County deputies shot Brown while trying to serve a warrant on April 21.

In an emotional address, attorney Wayne Kendall told media outlets that Brown had five gunshot wounds in total, according to the autopsy commissioned by the family.

Kendall described the autopsy report, saying that Brown had his arms on the steering wheel of the vehicle he was driving when he took four bullet wounds to his right arm, which were described as glancing shots. The initial shots came through the windshield of the vehicle. A fifth bullet hit Brown in the back of the head, ultimately killing him, in what attorneys said corroborated the bodycam video they saw on Monday.

"He was able to back up, turn the vehicle around, spin off across a vacant lot and, at that time, he was hit in the head, and that was the fatal bullet wound to the skull," Kendall said. "That was the cause of death."

A bullet from the shooting went through Michael Gordon's home.

"My grandbabies, when they come to visit Papa, they sit right there," Gordon said, describing where the bullet entered.

Gordon said he was at work at the time of the shooting.

"It came through my front room, hit my clock, went through my sidewall in my front room and through my kitchen and then struck my pot," he said.

Attorney Ben Crump, who led Tuesday's briefing, posted video on his Facebook page of deputies on the way to serve the warrant. The video showed several deputies riding in the back of a sheriff's office pickup truck.

Later in the day, Gov. Roy Cooper issued a statement, urging a special prosecutor to take over the case.

"In the interest of justice and confidence in the judicial system, I believe a special prosecutor should handle all matters regarding the shooting in Pasquotank County," read a memo from Cooper's office. "This would help assure the community and Mr. Brown’s family that a decision on pursuing criminal charges is conducted without bias. This position is consistent with the change in the law recommended by our Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice which calls for a special prosecutor in police shootings, and I believe the law should be changed to help ensure it."

Attorney General Josh Stein said he's had associates ask him to take on the prosecution. Stein tweeted about the case Tuesday.

"For my office to play a role in the prosecution, the district attorney must request our assistance," Stein said in the tweet. "My office has reached out to District Attorney Andrew Womble to offer that assistance, which he has acknowledged."

The FBI also announced it has opened a federal civil rights investigation into the shooting.

“The FBI Charlotte Field Office has opened a federal civil rights investigation into the police involved shooting death of Andrew Brown, Jr. Agents will work closely with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina and the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice to determine whether federal laws were violated. As this is an ongoing investigation, we cannot comment further," the agency said in a statement.

On Monday, attorneys for Brown's family 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 drive away.

Attorney Harry Daniels repeated that sentiment on Tuesday. There was plenty of raw emotion expressed by the legal team and family.

"An execution," Daniels said. "Overkill, an execution. Law enforcement in this country cannot be judge, jury and executioner."

Members of the Black Panthers were on hand, sometimes heckling the speakers. Some chanted "arrest him," referring to the person who shot Brown.

"If you get shot at, you're going to run," said Daniels. "That's bottom line, second nature. He left trying to save his life, and they continued to shoot and put a bullet in the back of his head."

Crump, widely known for his work after the death of George Floyd last year, ended the remarks by holding up a fist, shouting, "Don't say no more. Show the video."

Deputies were trying to serve a warrant on Brown 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 20 seconds of video to Brown's family members and one attorney on Monday afternoon.

In light of the shooting, some of the state's democratic lawmakers gathered on Tuesday to urge passage of bills that would allow law enforcement agencies to release video from body-worn and dashboard cameras within 48 hours.

Peaceful protests have been held daily in Elizabeth City since the shooting, but supporters have become increasingly frustrated with the inability to see the body-cam video, suggesting that authorities are hiding the truth and trying to mislead them.

"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."

"It wasn't enough. They need to show the whole video after 20 seconds. They made the situation worse," said Shimon James, a demonstrator in Elizabeth City.

In Raleigh on Tuesday night, dozens of demonstrators gathered in front of the State Capitol building with signs that said, "Release the real tape," "Solidarity with Elizabeth City," "Black Lives Matter" and "No justice, no peace."

"What we truly need is ourselves -- the people. We need solidarity. This is my message to all the Black people in this city. We need us because we're all we got. We don't have anyone else but ourselves, so we need to come together and stand in the face of hate," said a demonstrator who only wanted to be identified as Sunny.

The demonstration in Raleigh ended peacefully at 8 p.m.

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