Black man's death in Alabama triggers more protests
Protests in in the US state of Alabama have continued over the death of a black man with police now suggesting the victim was killed because he "brandished" his gun.
Emantic Fitzgerald “EJ” Bradford Jr., a former US soldier, was fatally shot on Thursday after police officers responding to a shooting report confused him for a gunman who remains at large.
An officer had killed Bradford while responding to the report of the shooting last week that wounded two people in the Riverchase Galleria shopping center the Birmingham suburb of Hoover on Thanksgiving night.
Alabama police offered an explanation, saying Bradford was shot for showing his gun.
"We can say with certainty Mr. Bradford brandished a gun during the seconds following the gunshots, which instantly heightened the sense of threat to approaching police officers responding to the chaotic scene," police said in a statement on Monday, as quoted by ABC News.
Bradford was trying to "wave people away from the shooting" and the officer did not issue any verbal commands before shooting, according to Benjamin Crump, a lawyer for Bradford's family.
Crump said the police officer at the shooting scene saw a black man with a gun and "made his determination he must be a criminal."
Meanwhile, several dozen protesters holding signs blocked heavily traveled US 31 at Interstate 459 during evening rush hour near the Riverchase Galleria.
The demonstration in the city of 95,000 people just south of Birmingham came shortly after Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato offered sympathy to Bradford's family. "We all want answers and we believe with patience and focus the truth will be firmly established," Brocato said while reading a public statement in which he pleaded for patience while a state investigation continues.
The incident has already prompted multiple protests. Protesters demand the release of further information, including video footage of the incident.
A group of pastors joined the protests on Monday, calling on police to explain the incident. "His mother deserves answers. The community deserves answers," said the Rev. Nate Brooks of the Greater Saint John Baptist Church in Birmingham.
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