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Sacramento protesters outraged by shooting of unarmed black man
SACRAMENTO, CA - MARCH 22: A Black Lives Matter protester holds a sign as he marches on Interstate 5 during a demonstration on March 22, 2018 in Sacramento, California. Hundreds of protesters staged a demonstration against the Sacramento police department after two officers shot and killed Stephon Clark, an unarmed black man, in the backyard of his grandmother's house following a foot pursuit on Sunday evening. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
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Sacramento protesters outraged by shooting of unarmed black man
Protesters in Sacramento took to the streets last weekend, outraged by the fatal shooting of Stephon Clark, an unarmed black man.
On March 18th, police responded to reports of a man breaking car windows in the residential neighborhood of Meadowview, according to Sacramento Bee reporter Benjy Egel.
Clark was standing in his grandmother's backyard, found to have only had a cellphone in hand when the 20 shots were fired by officers Terrence Mercadal and Jared Robinet, Egel reported.
Officers waited five to six minutes before handcuffing Clark and administering CPR. He was declared dead on the scene.
Three days after the shooting, Sacramento police released the officers' body-cam footage where they can be observed muting the sound. The Sheriff's Department released aerial footage of the incident on the same day.
The officers involved have been placed on paid, administrative leave pending investigation.
Following the release of the footage, protesters took over Interstate 5 during rush-hour traffic. They moved to Golden 1 Center and blocked off the crowds, significantly reducing the game's attendance. Protests intensified on Friday resulting in one arrest.
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The Sacramento Kings called attention to Clark's death wearing shirts bearing Clark's name and calling for accountability, and also released a video weighing in. The team owner also made comments in support.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyNM6Ldy-Ak
The Los Angeles Police Commission recently enacted policies requiring body-cam footage be made available soon after an officer-involved shooting.
"The shooting was Sunday night... but the protests didn't start until Thursday, one day after the body-cam footage was released," Benjy Egel told Take Two's A Martinez. Egel has been following the story for the Sacramento Bee. "That really ignited a passion in people."
The family of Stephon Clark has hired the attorney, Benjamin Crump, who represented surviving family members in high-profile cases such as the deaths of Treyvon Martin and Michael Brown.
The Rev. Al Sharpton announced he will be attending Clark's funeral this Thursday and will be holding a press conference in Sacramento.
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