Kadir Skinner shooting: Family, Wilmington city leaders demand body camera footage released
Wilmington officials demand answers after teen killed by police
Wilmington City officials and family members are calling for transparency from police and the release of body camera footage following the fatal shooting of 19-year-old Kadir Skinner. Skinner was shot three times in the back, according to his family.
WILMINGTON, Del. - Family members and Wilmington city leaders are demanding answers after police shot and killed a 19-year-old man last week.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: 19-year-old shot and killed by police in Wilmington, father speaks out
The backstory:
Kadir Skinner was shot and killed in Wilmington on June 24. Police officers were patrolling near the intersection of 24th and Jessup streets around 11 p.m., when they say they saw Skinner leave a house with a gun pointed at a crowd.
Police say Skinner ran when officers approached. Officers chased, and one officer, who has not been identified, shot Skinner. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
What they're saying:
Skinner's family says he was shot in the back while he was running away.
"They killed my baby," one family member said at a press conference on Wednesday. "Nothing requires three shots in the back."
Ten out of Wilmington's 13 City Council members joined the press conference Wednesday asking for transparency into Skinner's killing, and police body camera footage from that night.
Wilmington City Council President Trippi Congo said they are "angry, we are frustrated, and we are suspicious," about the shooting.
"Every investigation must be thorough, independent and fair," Congo said. "But it also must be transparent, timely and conducted in a manner that gives the public confidence that justice will be pursued wherever the facts lead."
The other side:
In response to the outcry, Wilmington Mayor John Carney and Wilmington Police Department Chief Wilfredo Campos released more details about the case.
"In the spirit of transparency and in alignment with our commitment to only share accurate and verifiable information, we are sharing additional details that WPD was able to confirm today," the two said in a joint statement. "We know that questions remain, we do not have all the answers, but we are committed to pursuing the truth."
According to Carney and Campos, Skinner suffered one gunshot wound "to his upper left buttocks area."
Officers said they found a loaded .45-caliber handgun with an extended magazine "in addition to ballistic evidence.
What's next:
Skinner's funeral is on Thursday.
The Wilmington Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Division and Office of Professional Standards and the Delaware Department of Justice are all investigating Skinner's shooting.
The city of Wilmington says it has offered to let Skinner's family watch the body camera footage "at any time they are ready."
The Source: Information in this story is from the Wilmington City Council, Wilmington Mayor John Carney, Wilmington Police Department Chief Wilfredo Campos and previous FOX 29 reports.