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On Monday, Austin police fatally shot an unarmed black teen that was reportedly naked and unarmed.
According to The Statesman, police were called with reports of a man chasing someone through an apartment complex. When officer Geoffrey Freeman, who is also black, arrived on the scene he encountered 17-year-old David Joseph. Austin police Chief of Staff Brian Manley told the newspaper that within seconds of the confrontation, Freeman opened fire killing Joseph.
It is unclear what happened during the confrontation but several sources told the newspaper that not only was the teen naked during the incident but he didn’t have a weapon. Police have not released much information regarding the shooting but the newspaper notes that proximity between Joseph and Freeman will be key in determining whether lethal force was justified as officers have several non-lethal weapons including stun guns.
“Once again it is very clear that this policy of response to resistance is not being enforced,” Nelson Linder, president of the Austin NAACP, told the Statesman. “They need to rethink this whole approach, especially if there might be mental illness issues.”
Jim Harrington, the director and founder of the Texas Civil Rights Project told the Statesman: “It is almost incomprehensible that a young naked man would be considered dangerous such that a police officer would kill him.” The social advocacy group is calling for “a full, fair, and open investigation” of the shooting.
“This is the pattern that led to the U.S. Department of Justice investigation a few years back, and it appears that the pattern of police shootings continues,” he said. “We intend to pursue this matter with the Department of Justice once more.”
Read more at The Statesman.
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