In North Carolina, a Familiar Pattern After the Police Killing of Andrew Brown, Jr.
April 27, 20218:01 PM
Benjamin Crump, one of the lawyers representing the family of Andrew Brown Jr., points to an autopsy chart that his team conducted showing where Mr. Brown was shot on April 27, 2021 in Elizabeth City, North Carolina.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
On Monday, city officials in Elizabeth City, North Carolina announced that they would be declaring a state of emergency ahead of the potential release of body cam footage of last week’s police killing of Andrew Brown, Jr., an unarmed 42-year-old Black man. Law enforcement and elected officials in Elizabeth City are following a familiar playbook for police departments that face calls for reform following high-profile killings of unarmed civilians, who are often Black: close ranks, delay information, and then, when the release of damaging information is imminent, preemptively attempt to shut down community protests.