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Police muted body cameras after shooting unarmed Black man in Sacramento

Stephon Clark was reportedly fatally shot in his own backyard.

Photo of Kris Seavers

Kris Seavers

Police muted their body cameras after fatally shooting 22-year-old Stephon Clark, a Black man who was unarmed, body camera footage shows.

Police muted their body cameras just minutes after they fatally shot an unarmed Black man in his own yard, Vice News reported based on body camera footage released on Wednesday.

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The Sacramento Police Department released the footage two days after two officers shot and killed 22-year-old Stephon Clark, according to the Sacramento Bee. Police said they thought he was pointing a firearm at them, or a crowbar, but the department later confirmed that Clark only had a cell phone.

Warning: This video shows violent imagery.

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The body camera footage shows that officers initially thought Clark was armed and shot him only seconds after pursuing him into his grandparents’ yard. Clark lived there, and his cousin says family members would knock on bedroom windows after dark to get someone’s attention in the house, Mic reported.

The Sacramento Police Department reportedly confirmed officers fired 20 times at Clark. The footage reveals officers muting their body cameras shortly after.

“There are a variety of reasons why officers have the opportunity to mute their body-worn cameras,” Sacramento police spokesman Sgt. Vance Chandler said.

Clark’s death has drawn the attention of Black Lives Matter supporters and activists nationally who blame police misconduct.

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The officers involved in the shooting, who have not yet been identified, have been placed on administrative leave.

H/T Vice

 
The Daily Dot