The family of Andrew Brown, a North Carolina black man killed by police during the execution of a drug warrant last month, is set to view 18 minutes of body camera footage Tuesday afternoon after relatives were previously granted access to a shorter snippet.
The video will be shown to those close to Brown at around 3 p.m., according to the Associated Press, which cited county officials. The incident contains more than two hours of relevant footage, though a judge concluded that the bulk of the video did “not contain images of the deceased, and thus are not appropriate for disclosure at this time.”
Family members previously viewed 20 seconds of the fatal shooting in late April, but the showing of longer clips and the public release of the video have been held up by a court, as is customary in North Carolina. A judge approved the extended viewing last Thursday.
ANDREW BROWN’S FAMILY SHOWN 20 SECONDS OF BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE, ATTORNEY CLAIMS IT WAS ‘EXECUTION’
Brown was pronounced dead after he was shot during the execution of an arrest warrant on April 21, following a tip from a confidential informant who told police that he was selling large quantities of crack, heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine. Agents involved in the sting described Brown as “a source of supply” of large quantities of narcotics in the Elizabeth City area, according to a warrant.
Attorneys who have publicly appeared beside the family, including Ben Crump, the lawyer who represented the families of both George Floyd and Daunte Wright, have dubbed the shooting an “execution” and insisted that Brown was fleeing law enforcement in his car. However, on April 28, District Attorney Andrew Womble disputed this characterization and claimed that the 42-year-old rammed officers with his car before gunfire erupted.
An autopsy conducted by Brown’s legal team concluded he was shot five times during the incident, including one time in the back of the head.
Pasquotank County Sheriff Tommy Wooten II has been an outspoken advocate for releasing the footage earlier rather than later.
“I wanted the body camera footage to be released to the public as soon as possible, and I’m disappointed it won’t happen immediately,” he said in an April 28 statement. “Obviously, I’ll respect the judge’s ruling. Although we are unable to show the public what happened right now, the independent investigators are working to complete their investigation. As soon as all the important facts are given to me, I will act quickly to ensure accountability and I’ll be as transparent as I possibly can with the public.”
Seven deputies have been placed on leave in the aftermath of the shooting, including Investigator Daniel Meads, Deputy Robert Morgan, and Cpl. Aaron Lewellyn, who were identified as the shooters.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
On April 27, the FBI opened a federal civil rights inquiry to “determine whether federal laws were violated” in the shooting and its aftermath.
“The FBI Charlotte Field Office has opened a federal civil rights investigation into the police involved shooting death of Andrew Brown, Jr,” the FBI told the Washington Examiner via email at the time. “Agents will work closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina and the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice to determine whether federal laws were violated. As this is an ongoing investigation, we cannot comment further.”
