Bodycam video of the fatal shooting of Andrew Brown Jr. by North Carolina sheriff’s deputies last week has prompted local officials to declare a state of emergency Monday, even before its release.
Brown, 42, was shot in the back of the head in Elizabeth City last Wednesday. His hands were on the steering wheel of his car when police opened fire, attorneys for his family said. Brown’s family, which was allowed to view just 20 seconds of the video on Monday, called his death an execution.
“There was no time in the 20 seconds that we saw where he was threatening the officers in any kind of way,” attorney Chantel Cherry-Lassiter told reporters at a news conference.
City officials enacted a state of emergency at 8 a.m. Monday morning.
“In order to ensure the safety of our citizens and their property, city officials realize there may potentially be a period of civil unrest within the city following the public release of that footage,” said the state of emergency declaration, which was signed by Elizabeth City Mayor Bettie Parker.