Killing of David McAtee
Part of George Floyd protests | |
Date | June 1, 2020 |
---|---|
Time | 12:15 a.m. EST |
Venue | Food Mart parking lot |
Location | Louisville, Kentucky |
Coordinates | 38°15′10″N 85°45′31″W / 38.2527°N 85.7585°W |
Type | Shooting |
Outcome | Police chief Steve Conrad fired over handling of incident |
Deaths | David McAtee |
Suspects | LMPD
Kentucky National Guard
|
Charges | Pending investigation (federal) |
Litigation | Wrongful death lawsuit against LMPD and Kentucky Army National Guard pending[1] |
On June 1, 2020, David McAtee, a 53-year-old African-American man, was fatally shot by the
Biography
David McAtee was the youngest child of Odessa Riley and James McAtee, and had eight siblings. He owned and operated YaYa's BBQ Shack, a popular
Shooting
At the time of the shooting, a 9 p.m. curfew was in place due to protests following the recent murder of George Floyd and killing of Breonna Taylor by police officers. The LMPD and National Guard were attempting to disperse a crowd of people in and around the parking lot of Dino's Food Mart, a popular social gathering spot at a gas station across the street from McAtee's restaurant.[8][10][11]
Witnesses in the crowd said the gathering was independent of the protests and was instead part of a weekly neighborhood social occasion at which McAtee served food. They allege that soldiers and police, in their effort to enforce the curfew, had boxed the crowd into the area thus causing a panic, which resulted in people running towards the restaurant.[12] According to an LMPD statement, someone in the crowd opened fire at the armed officers and soldiers, who returned fire. A bullet shot by a National Guard soldier struck McAtee in the chest,[13][14][15] killing him at the scene at about 12:15 a.m.[16]
Following the shooting, hundreds of people stood near the restaurant, and McAtee's body remained lying at the scene for 12–14 hours while police investigated.[9][17] After the coroner removed the body and the police departed, president of the Louisville affiliate of the National Urban League Sadiqa Reynolds recruited a local gospel singer to sing "Amazing Grace".[9]
Investigation
On June 1,
On June 4, videographic analysis by
On June 9, the governor's office said that lab tests from the case concluded that McAtee was killed from a single gunshot by a National Guard soldier.
In May 2021, Commonwealth Attorney Tom Wine released more information about the shooting. LMPD officer Crews fired eight times, officer Allen fired once, National Guard soldier Andrew Kroszkewicz fired four times, and staff sergeant Matthew Roark fired six times.[26]
Aftermath
Many residents and protesters raised concerns about why so many officers and troops were at the location, as the most significant protest that night was roughly 20 blocks away. They have also stated that the group wasn't protesting but were, instead, customers of the store and BBQ cart.
Crews became the subject of a professional standards investigation on June 2 after she posted a photo on social media of a protester offering her flowers during a protest on May 28. The photo depicts Crews standing in a police line with other officers, while a white female protester holds flowers near Crews' chest. Crews captioned the photo with "I hope the pepper balls that she got lit up with a little later on hurt" and claimed that the protester was attempting to elicit a reaction from her with taunts and finished the caption with "Come back and get ya some more old girl, I'll be on the line again tonight."[28]
In May 2021, the state of Kentucky announced that they would not file charges against the Louisville Metro Police Department officers and the Kentucky National Guard soldiers.[29][30]
Reactions
Metro Council President David James described himself as a close personal friend of McAtee and described him as a good man who loved his neighborhood and city.[13] McAtee's mother told reporters that he was known by the policemen and the community, and that he had fed all the policemen and would join them for discussions while they ate.[12]
After the state of Kentucky announced that there will not be charges filed against the officers and soldiers involved in the shooting, people in Louisville protested. Several demonstrators were arrested including McAtee's brother, who was charged with unlawful assembly and obstructing the highway.[31]
See also
- Black Lives Matter
- Lists of killings by law enforcement officers in the United States
- Political violence
References
- ^ Riley, Jason (September 21, 2020). "David McAtee's family files wrongful death lawsuit against Louisville police, Kentucky National Guard". WDRB. Archived from the original on January 8, 2021. Retrieved January 6, 2021.
- ^ McMorris-Santoro, Evan; Brunelli, Kevin; Waldrop, Theresa (June 2, 2020). "Louisville fires its police chief over handling of fatal shooting during protest". CNN. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
The police chief of Louisville, Kentucky, has been fired after officials discovered two police officers involved in fatal shooting of a man during a protest over George Floyd's death had not activated their body cameras.
- ^ Green, Marcus (June 1, 2020). "Beshear urges swift release of videos showing fatal police/National Guard shooting of Louisville man". WDRB. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
The shooting came amid the fourth day of protests over the police killing of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency room technician and former EMT.
- ^ a b c Schreiner, Bruce; Tulp, Sophia (June 1, 2020). "Protests, Louisville police chief fired after fatal shooting". Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
- ^ Lampen, Claire (June 2, 2020). "Everything We Know About the Police Shooting of David McAtee". The Cut. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ Rivas, Anthony (June 2, 2020). "Louisville police chief fired after fatal shooting of David McAtee". ABC News. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ Sanchez, Ray; McMorris-Santoro, Evan (June 2, 2020). "Louisville BBQ man who was fatally shot when police dispersed crowd used to feed officers for free". CNN. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f Mazzei, Patricia (June 4, 2020). "A Popular Louisville Restaurant Owner Was Killed by the Police. What Happened?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Elie, Lolis Eric (June 5, 2020). "Louisville Barbecue Owner Killed in Police Shooting Fed a Food Desert". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 6, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Kobin, Billy; Kachmar, Kala (June 1, 2020). "Investigation launched into LMPD, National Guard fatal shooting of West End business owner". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ Brito, Christopher (June 2, 2020). "Louisville "BBQ Man" used to feed police for free. He was shot and killed during the protests while cooking for people in his neighborhood". CBS News. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ a b c "Family members say David McAtee died trying to protect his niece". KNOE-TV. June 1, 2020. Archived from the original on June 6, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ a b Bailey, Phillip M.; Costello, Darcy (June 1, 2020). "'My son didn't hurt nobody': David McAtee, Louisville business owner, killed by authorities". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ Otts, Chris (June 2, 2020). "Police say video shows David McAtee firing shots before being hit in west Louisville shooting". WDRB. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Acquisto, Alex (June 9, 2020). "Beshear aide: National Guard fired shot that killed Louisville restaurant owner". Lexington Herald-Leader. Archived from the original on June 11, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
- ^ a b Ladd, Sarah (August 3, 2020). "State investigation into shooting of David 'YaYa' McAtee 'substantially complete'". Louisville Courier Journal. Retrieved August 11, 2020.
- ^ Linthicum, Kate (June 8, 2020). "Louisville demanded justice after police fatally shot Breonna Taylor. Instead, it lost another black life". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
- ^ a b Schreiner, Bruce; Reynolds Yonker, Rebecca (June 2, 2020). "Police: Video shows BBQ restaurant owner who was killed in Louisville had fired a gun". KGO-TV. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ Booker, Brakkton (June 2, 2020). "Louisville Police Releases Video It Says Shows David McAtee Firing At Officers". NPR. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
- ^ Pane, Lisa Marie (June 3, 2020). "Retired officer, ex-college athlete among victims of unrest". Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
- ^ Fischer, Greg; Conrad, Steve (July 27, 2015). "Review of our current Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) regarding the use of force" (PDF). Louisville Metro Police Department. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 1, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
- from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
- ^ Green, Marcus (June 9, 2020). "David McAtee killed by Kentucky National Guard bullet, Beshear official says". WDRB.com. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
- ^ Weiter, Taylor (June 1, 2020). "Louisville police Chief Steve Conrad released immediately, Fischer says". WWL-TV.
- ^ Kachmar, Kala (June 9, 2020). "Who killed Louisville businessman David McAtee? What newly released evidence shows". The Courier-Journal.
- ^ Vogt, Dustin; Valtierra, Jerrica (May 26, 2021). "No state charges for Kentucky National Guard, Louisville police in David McAtee's death". WAVE. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
- ^ a b Costello, Darcy (June 1, 2020). "Louisville Metro Police Chief Steve Conrad fired after David McAtee shooting, city unrest". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ Tobin, Ben (June 2, 2020). "Louisville cop in fatal shooting of David McAtee had mocked protester on Facebook". USA Today. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ "No state charges for Kentucky National Guard, LMPD in shooting death of David McAtee". WLKY. May 28, 2021. Archived from the original on May 25, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
- ^ "Kentucky National Guard Members Face No Charges for Shooting BBQ Chef". thecrimereport.org. May 26, 2021. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
- ^ "David McAtee's brother among demonstrators arrested by LMPD during march". WLKY. May 26, 2021. Archived from the original on May 27, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.