Police in Southern California have released video footage of a black man being shot and killed as he allegedly raced away from them with a pistol.
According to San Bernardino police, after receiving a report that a black male was visible with a gun, officers were dispatched to a parking lot at 8 p.m. on Saturday.
According to ABC7, police thought Rob Adams, 23, was a part of a local illicit gambling enterprise.
Adams’ family asserts that he was most likely holding his smartphone rather than a pistol because he was on the phone with his mother when the police came.
His family is expecting to submit a legal claim, which is the first step in filing a lawsuit, on Thursday and is requesting that the officer be charged with murder. Civil rights lawyer Ben Crump termed it a “horrific execution.”
Adams’ mother, Tamika Deavila King, stated when speaking with her son on the phone, “All I heard after that was gunfire.” He never bid me farewell. I’ll tell it again: it wasn’t a gun. I have evidence on my phone showing that I was speaking to my son at the very moment that he was slain.
At a press conference on Wednesday, civil rights lawyer Ben Crump described the execution as “horrific” and cited Adams’ demise as a prime illustration of the phrase “fire first, ask questions later.”
Adams’ family’s legal team, led by Crump, claims that the police, who claim he had “an extensive criminal background,” have painted him as a monster.
“My kid Rob wasn’t a part of a gang.” His father, Robert Adams, remarked on Wednesday that he was a good child. Who would want to see their child get slain on video?
Adams’ lawyers did acknowledge, though, that he had previously been convicted of robbery and was working to get past it.
According to San Bernardino Police Chief Darren Goodman, two officers witnessed Adams take a revolver out of his belt and start heading toward the cruiser while they were both wearing uniforms but operating an unmarked vehicle.
Police released body camera footage with Goodman’s commentary. Tuesday, following the uproar caused by a video that contained simply the CCTV footage.
A roughly six-minute video clip from the police department’s body cameras and surveillance cameras was shared on social media.
Despite the absence of audio from the original interaction, Goodman said that the cops verbally ordered Adams.
Adams may be seen on camera turning around and running in the opposite direction toward two automobiles that are backed up against a high wall.
Goodman According to Goodman in the film, “They thought [Adams] intended to use the truck as cover to shoot at them.” “The police observed Adams looking over his left shoulder with the pistol still in his right hand, fearful for the safety of onlookers as well as the lives of the cops.” Adams was hit by a gunshot from one of the cops.
At a hospital, Adams’ death was confirmed. A 9 millimeter handgun was found by police following the incident.
No one knows the identify of the police officer who discharged their weapon.
‘Being that Adams never pointed the gun, was approached by an unmarked car, and was shot while running, consequently credible crime does not exist,’ stated Ben Reynoso, a councillor for San Bernardino, on Twitter on Tuesday. Robert Adams is ultimately killed by the San Bernardino Police Department.
The murder is the most recent of numerous Black males who were shot dead by law enforcement officers throughout the nation, which sparked demonstrations or calls for federal investigations.
In the meanwhile, the San Bernardino Police Department was among five law enforcement agencies that were deemed to have fallen short in its efforts to prevent racial and ethnic bias, according to a report issued by the state auditor in April.
A few cops were also found to have engaged in this behavior, “either during their on-duty encounters with persons or online through their social media posts,” according to the study.