Say Their Names:
George Floyd
George Floyd died May 25, 2020, after a police officer in Minneapolis kneeled on the neck of the 46-year-old handcuffed man who was lying face down on a street. The entire episode was recorded on video by one of many bystanders who heard Floyd tell police he couldn’t breathe, repeated pleas that went ignored. The four responding officers involved were fired as protesters demanded they also be charged with Floyd’s murder.
Sean Reed
Sean Reed, Black man killed by Indianapolis police on Facebook Live
Source:Twitter
Sean Reed‘s death on May 6, 2020, was live-streamed on Facebook during a footrace running away from police, who Tasered and shot and killed the unarmed 21-year-old Black man who was also a U.S. military veteran. With the Facebook Live still recording, police can be heard joking about how Reed would need a “closed casket” funeral.
Breonna Taylor
Source: New York Times
Shortly after midnight on March 13, Louisville police officers, executing a search warrant, used a battering ram to crash into the apartment of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old African-American emergency room technician. After a brief confrontation, they fired several shots, striking her at least eight times.
According to The Louisville Courier Journal, the police were investigating two men who they believed were selling drugs out of a house that was far from Ms. Taylor’s home. But a judge had also signed a warrant allowing the police to search Ms. Taylor’s residence because the police said they believed that one of the two men had used her apartment to receive packages. The judge’s order was a so-called no-knock warrant, which allowed the police to enter without warning or without identifying themselves as law enforcement.
Amaud Arbery
Source: Wikipedia
On February 23, 2020, Ahmaud Marquez Arbery, an unarmed 25-year-old African-American man, was fatally shot near Brunswick in Glynn County, Georgia, while jogging on Holmes Road just before the intersection with Satilla Drive in the Satilla Shores neighborhood.[1] Arbery had been pursued and confronted by two white residents, Travis McMichael and his father Gregory, who were armed and driving a pickup truck.[2] The event was recorded on video by a third Satilla Shores resident, William "Roddie" Bryan, who was following Arbery in a second vehicle.
Jamee Johnson
Source: https://campaigns.organizefor.org/petitions/justice-for-jamee-johnson
On December 14, 2019, Jamee Johnson was riding in the Tallyrand area of Jacksonville. Jamee was pulled over for routine traffic stop by Jacksonville Sheriff Officer Graham and Josue Garriga. During this traffic stop, police say Officer Garriga learned the Jamee had a gun. Officer Garriga said Jamee initially complied but then pushed the officer, reached for a weapon and was shot four times. His death has sent shockwaves through the Jacksonville community and throughout Florida. Jamee Johnson was a senior at Florida A&M University who has been described as kind and driven. He was a member of the Progressive Black Men association at FAMU and was a senior majoring in Business Administration.
Michael Dean, 28
Source:S. Lee Merritt
Michael Dean, a 28-year-old father, was shot in the head by trigger-happy Temple Police Department Officer Carmen DeCruz, in Texas on Dec. 3, 2019. A preliminary autopsy report declared Dean’s death a homicide. But as of Dec. 20, police had not released any other information in a suspected coverup. Dean’s mother said a police detective initially told her that her son didn’t pull over right away and when he exited the car, he walked toward the officer, who then shot him.
Ariane McCree, 28
Source:The Herald/YouTube
Ariane McCree was shot and killed by two Chester Police officers in South Carolina after being detained for allegedly shoplifting at a Walmart on Nov. 23. Police claimed that the 28-year-old was placed in custody, then fled and showed officers a gun. However, the family of McCree, who have filed a wrongful death lawsuit, claims that he was “handcuffed, with his hands behind his back, when he was fatally shot.”
Atatiana Jefferson, 28
Source: Wikipedia
Atatiana Koquice Jefferson, a 28-year-old woman, was fatally shot in her home by a police officer in Fort Worth, Texas, United States, in the early morning of October 12, 2019.[1][2] Police arrived at her home after a neighbor called a non-emergency number, stating that Jefferson's front door was open.[2] Police body camera footage showed that when she came to her window to observe police outside her home, Officer Aaron Dean shot through it and killed her.[2] Police stated that they found a handgun near her body, which according to her 8-year-old nephew, she was pointing toward the window before being shot.[3][2][4] On October 14, 2019, Dean resigned from the Fort Worth Police Department and was arrested on a murder charge.[5][6] On December 20, 2019, Dean was indicted for murder.[7][8] Jefferson was black and the officer who shot her is white, prompting news outlets to compare Jefferson's shooting to the September 2018 murder of Botham Jean.
Willie McCoy, 20
One of six officers who fired at Willie McCoy had killed unarmed man in 2018
Vallejo officer Ryan McMahon, among officers in shooting at Taco Bell, faces lawsuit in earlier killing
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On February 9, 2019, Willie McCoy fell asleep at a drive through in Vallejo, California. When police approached him, he was shot 25 times. Police claimed there was a gun in his lap. His lawyer told The New York Times shortly after the shooting, “He was just riddled with bullets. It was really a shock how many times he was actually struck.”
William Green
Green was reportedly pulled over for driving erratically, handcuffed and placed in the front seat of a police cruiser in Prince George’s County, Maryland, on the night of Jan. 27 before a police officer entered the car and shot him while he was restrained by the cuffs as well as a seat belt. Police have tried to criminalize him as a suspected drug user, but either way Green was already restrained when police shot him, meaning there is no way cops could have feared for their lives before deciding to shoot him. This is America.
Botham Shem Jean, 26
The young man who was killed by a Dallas police officer in his own apartment this morning has been identified as 26-year-old Botham Jean. He worked at the PwC firm in Downtown Dallas. http://bit.ly/2oKSVX0
Botham Shem Jean was killed on Sept. 6, 2018, when off-duty police officer Amber Guyger entered his home and shot him to death in Dallas. Her excuse: She said she thought it was her apartment. She was later charged with manslaughter three days after the shooting.
Stephon Clark, 22
Source: Wikipedia
In the late evening of March 18, 2018, Stephon Clark, a 22-year-old African-American man, was shot and killed in Meadowview, Sacramento, California by Terrence Mercadal and Jared Robinet, two officers of the Sacramento Police Department in the backyard of his grandmother's house while he had a phone in his hand. The encounter was filmed by police video cameras and by a Sacramento County Sheriff's Department helicopter which was involved in observing Clark, on the ground and in directing ground officers to the point at which the shooting took place. The officers stated that they shot Clark, firing 20 rounds, believing that he had pointed a gun at them. Police found only a cell phone on him. While the Sacramento County Coroner's autopsy report concluded that Clark was shot seven times, including three shots to the right side of the back, the pathologist hired by the Clark family stated that Clark was shot eight times, including six times in the back.
Jordan Edwards, 15
Source: Wikipedia
On April 29, 2017, Jordan Edwards, a 15-year-old African American boy, was fatally shot by police officer Roy Oliver in Balch Springs, Texas, within the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.[1][2][3][4] He was shot in the back of the head while riding in the front passenger's seat of a vehicle driving away from officers that attempted to stop it.[3][5] He was unarmed during the encounter.[1]
Oliver was fired from the department and arrested on May 5, 2017. On August 28, 2018, he was found guilty of murder.[6] On August 29, 2018, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Keith Scott, 43
Source: Wikipedia
Keith Lamont Scott, a 43-year-old African-American man, was fatally shot on September 20, 2016, in Charlotte, North Carolina United States by Brentley Vinson, an African-American city police officer. Police officers had arrived at Scott's apartment complex to search for an unrelated man with an outstanding warrant. According to police, officers saw Scott exit a vehicle in the parking lot while carrying a handgun, and he refused to comply with their orders. Scott's wife was also present and disputed that account
Terence Crutcher, 40
Source: Wikipedia
On September 16, 2016, Terence Crutcher, a 40-year-old motorist, was shot and killed by police officer Betty Jo Shelby in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was unarmed during the encounter, in which he was standing near his vehicle in the middle of a street.
The shooting led to protests in Tulsa. On September 22, the Tulsa County District Attorney charged Shelby with first-degree manslaughter after the shooting was labeled a homicide. On May 17, 2017, a jury found her not guilty of first-degree manslaughter.
Jamarion Robinson, 26
Jamarion Robinson was killed by police in East Point, Georgia, in August of 2016. He was shot 76 times after refusing to open the door of his girlfriend’s home when officers knocked. Police then kicked in the door and began firing.
Philando Castile, 32
Source:Getty
Philando Castile, a cafeteria supervisor in St. Paul, Minnesota, was shot and killed by police officer Jeronimo Yanez during a traffic stop for a “busted tail light” in Falcon Heights on July 6, 2016, with his girlfriend Diamond Reynolds having livestreamed the horrific moments after his shooting on Facebook Live.
Alton Sterling, 37
Source:Getty
Alton Sterling was shot to death on July 5, 2016 when two white officers pinned him to the pavement during an arrest outside a convenience store where he had sold CDs in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The cops weren’t charged with any crime.
Gregory Gunn, 58
Source:Getty
Gregory Gunn was fatally struck by five shots fired by a white Montgomery, Alabama police officer, who claimed he looked “suspicious” while walking home from a friend’s home in the early hours of Feb. 5, 2016 — the incident shed light on several past episodes of police violence dating back decades in Montgomery.
Mario Woods, 26
Source:Getty
San Francisco police reportedly fired more than 20 gunshots at Mario Woods, who cops suspected of a stabbing, during a stand-off on Dec. 2, 2015 that underscored the SFPD’s documented history of systematic racism.
Jamar Clark, 24
Source:Getty
After responding to a domestic dispute, Minneapolis, Minnesota police fatally shot an unarmed Jamar Clark during an altercation on Nov. 15, 2015 that spurred Black Lives Matter Minneapolis and other activists to fight using #Justice4Jamar.
Corey Jones, 31
Source: Wikipedia
Corey Jones (February 3, 1984 – October 18, 2015) was a man who was killed by a plainclothes police officer, Nouman K. Raja, while waiting by his disabled car in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.[2][3][4]
Raja, who was in plainclothes and in an unmarked white van, approached Jones, who was waiting by his disabled vehicle on a highway exit ramp.[5] Within seconds, Raja fired six shots at Jones, striking him three times.[6] After the shooting, Raja falsely claimed to investigators that he had identified himself as a police officer and shot Jones in self-defense; both assertions were disproved by an audio recording of the fatal shooting.[5]
On June 1, 2016, Raja was charged with manslaughter by culpable negligence and attempted first-degree murder with a firearm. He was convicted of the charges on March 7, 2019,[7] following an eight-day jury trial.[5] Raja was sentenced to 25 years in prison on April 25, 2019.
Sandra Bland, 28
Source: Wikipedia
Sandra Bland was a 28-year-old African American woman who was found hanged in a jail cell in Waller County, Texas, on July 13, 2015, three days after being arrested during a pretextual traffic stop.[1][2] Her death was ruled a suicide. It was followed by protests against her arrest, disputing the cause of death, and alleging racial violence against her.[3][4]
Bland was pulled over for a minor traffic violation on July 10 by State Trooper Brian Encinia. The exchange escalated, resulting in Bland's arrest and charge for assaulting a police officer. The arrest was partially recorded by Encinia's dashcam, a bystander's cell phone, and Bland's own cell phone. After authorities reviewed the dashcam footage, Encinia was placed on administrative leave for failing to follow proper traffic stop procedures.[5][6]
Texas authorities and the FBI conducted an investigation into Bland's death[5][7] and determined the Waller County jail did not follow required policies, including time checks on inmates and ensuring that employees had completed required mental health training.[8]
In December 2015, a grand jury declined to indict the county sheriff and jail staff for a felony relating to Bland's death. The following month, Encinia was indicted for perjury for making false statements about the circumstances surrounding Bland's arrest and he was subsequently fired by the Texas Department of Public Safety.[9] In September 2016, Bland's mother settled a wrongful death lawsuit against the county jail and police department for $1.9 million and some procedural changes.[10][11] In June 2017, the perjury charge against Encinia was dropped in return for his agreement to permanently end his law enforcement career.
Freddie Gray, 25
Source:Getty
Freddie Gray died in Baltimore on April 19, 2015 — a week after he was arrested, dragged into a police van, restrained and suffered a spine injury during a brutal incident involving six officers that amplified police and community tensions.
Walter Scott, 50
Source:Getty
Walter Scott was killed by North Charleston, South Carolina police officer Michael Slager, who fired eight shots at the father of four after having chased him on foot following a traffic stop on April 4, 2015.
Eric Garner, 43
Source:Getty
Eric Garner, a father of six, died after New York City police officer Daniel Pantaleo placed him in an apparent chokehold — a tactic prohibited by NYPD policy — as he wailed “I can’t breathe” during a videotaped arrest for allegedly selling untaxed cigarettes in Staten Island, New York on July 17, 2014.
Michael Brown, 18
Source:Getty
Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, was fatally shot on Aug. 9, 2014, by Darren Wilson, a white police officer, in Ferguson, Mo., a suburb of St. Louis, prompting nationwide protests and an agreement with the Department of Justice for police reforms after a blistering DOJ probe uncovered routine racist practices among police.
Tamir Rice, 12
Source:Getty
On Nov. 22, 2014, Tamir E. Rice was fatally shot by Cleveland police at a park outside of a recreation center after he reportedly reached for a fake pistol — an airsoft-type gun replica of a semi-automatic handgun that shot pellets — which cops mistook for a weapon.
Terrance Franklin
The City of Minneapolis has reached a $795,000 settlement with the family of Terrance Franklin, fatally shot by officers in 2013.https://www.kare11.com/article/news/crime/minneapolis-reaches-settlement-with-family-in-deadly-2013-police-shooting/89-8363e20f-38b1-4749-9550-7a940fce2590 …
Terrance Franklin was fatally shot by Minneapolis Police’s SWAT team in 2013 after suspecting that he was involved in a burglary. Officers and officials claim that Franklin tried to wrestle a M5 rifle from one of the officers. However, in a lawsuit filed by Franklin’s father, the family claims that he had already surrendered and had his hands up.
Trayvon Martin, 17
Source:Getty
Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman on February 26, 2012 in Sanford, Florida, sparking a movement against excessive force and police violence.