Bodycam video from fatal police shooting of teen contradicts HPD’s argument for withholding footage
HNN May 19, 2021: … HNN has obtained the April 5 footage from the officer who fired the first shots ….
The video is from an officer HNN is referring to as “Officer One.”
He is a passenger in a squad car and says several times at the beginning of the video, while a pursuit is still underway, “Stop the vehicle. Stop the vehicle. Stop the vehicle.”
You can hear the police sirens blaring in the background as police chase a stolen Honda with Texas plates that was believed to be used in an armed robbery minutes earlier….
When the squad car stops as well, Officer One gets out and appears to drop his rifle on the ground. He then picks it up and puts it back inside the squad car.
Other officers are heard yelling, “Get on the ground,” and “Police.”
Officer One is directly behind the Honda when he fires 10 consecutive shots at the back of the driver’s seat. The Honda accelerates.
The same video shows another officer approaching the Honda from the passenger side when Officer One fires. As the shots are fired, Officer Two jumps back with his gun drawn.
That night, HPD Chief Susan Ballard briefed the media in a news conference, saying, “We believe that the vehicle rammed into two marked police cars.”
But it’s not clear from the bodycam footage that Officer One is wearing if the Honda moves or rams any HPD units. Instead, the vehicle appeared to be stopped when the officer got behind it….
Aiu said officers at the time didn’t know the weapon used in an armed robbery just before the chase started, may have been a replica gun, which HPD said they found in the Honda.
“We don’t know what the officer is actually seeing when he’s making the decision to use deadly force,” Aiu said referring to the fact the body camera is worn in the chest area and doesn’t show the line of sight. “Whether or not he sees the suspect in the drivers seat with the weapon or not.”…
read … Bodycam video from fatal police shooting of teen contradicts HPD’s argument for withholding footage
(Looks like someone in HPD doesn't agree with the Prosecutor's plan....)
Prosecutor: Body cam footage in fatal police shootings to be withheld for at least 30 days
HNN May 18, 2021: … After taxpayers spent millions to provide the Honolulu Police Department with body cameras, city Prosecutor Steven Alm now says video in two fatal police shootings will be withheld from the public for 30 to 60 days….
In a news release, Alm said his office will not publicly release body camera video, 911 recordings and other evidence in the recent fatal shootings of Lindani Myeni, an unarmed black man in Nuuanu, and 16-year-old robbery suspect Iramember Sykap unless his office determines that the shootings are justified.
He said such a review will take 30 to 60 days….
read … Prosecutor: Body cam footage in fatal police shootings to be withheld for at least 30 days