Law enforcement officials have their own handling of a police shooting in Colorado Springs to blame for the angry protests that have erupted since.
Of course, friends and family members of a teen shot and killed by police Saturday would take to the streets if both law enforcement agencies in their community badly mischaracterize the events that occurred. The misrepresentation of events in official communications would leave even the most trustworthy soul skeptical that an honest and fair investigation is about to occur.
Because a home-security camera happened to capture the event and reporters at The Gazette acquired a copy of it, we know that De’Von Malik Bailey, 19, was running from Colorado Springs police Saturday when he fell to the ground, presumably from the gunshot wound that took his life.
This video is incongruent with how top officials with the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office — the agency investigating the shooting — described Bailey’s death in a press release sent out Sunday morning, a day after the officer-involved shooting near Adams Elementary School southeast of downtown.
This was the official story the department sent out to the public: “The Colorado Springs Police Department were dispatched to a report of a personal robbery in the 2400 block of East Fountain Blvd. Upon arrival, officers interviewed the victim who identified two suspects. Officers contacted the suspects and during the encounter, one suspect reached for a firearm. At least one officer fired a shot at the suspect.”
No video has been released yet showing what happened in the moments before Bailey was running away. It’s possible police will promptly release a video from the officers’ body cameras showing Bailey reach for a gun and then run.
The video only shows Bailey run four or five steps into the camera’s range before stumbling to the ground, and then two officers walking over to the wounded teen from the direction he came from with their weapons drawn. Witnesses of the shooting have told The Gazette they didn’t see the teen reach for a gun. They said the teen turned and ran and police shot him in the back. There doesn’t appear to be a gun in Bailey’s hands in the video.
“There is some outrageously irresponsible and incorrect information being put out on social media,” Lt. James Sokolik, a Colorado Springs police spokesman, told The Gazette, when asked about conflicting witness statements.
Yes, and it was being put out there by the Colorado Springs police and the sheriff’s department. No wonder protesters arrived at police headquarters downtown.
Want to rile up a community grieving the loss of a 19-year-old? Irresponsibly post misleading and incomplete information about the incident. What faith are these families to have in justice if the police department immediately misrepresents what occurred?
We understand that police work is difficult. These officers were responding to reports of a possible crime — it’s unclear whether the reported robbery involved a gun — and they were very near a neighborhood park and school. Bailey was headed toward the park and was a few steps away from the sidewalk when he fell down.
But the disconnect between the first story police released and the video have caused distrust. Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers was right to begin talks of a grand jury to consider the evidence instead of leaving the decision of whether to prosecute the officers for a crime to the district attorney. Perhaps a DA from another location should be called in as well, to calm fears that justice will be misplaced.
Protesters have made their point clear. If they continue to demonstrate, we urge them to continue to be peaceful and obey laws and police commands. More violence is the last thing anyone should want.
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