The disturbing bodycam footage in the deadly police shooting of a young Black man in Texas confirms that the officer involved was not threatened in any way before he took aim and fired within seconds of seeing him and only gave verbal commands after discharging his weapon.
It also confirms police were lying in their subsequent accounts of the shooting.
The video footage of Joshua Feast‘s police shooting was released on Monday morning, nearly two weeks after the shooting in the town of La Marque. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the family of the slain 22-year-old, described the video of the shooting as proof of an obvious dereliction of duty.
“This footage portrays one thing: A defenseless man was shot in the back when he had not disobeyed a single lawful command and posed no threat to the officer,” Crump said in a statement that was emailed to NewsOne.
The video also shows that La Marque Police Officer Jose Santos did not even attempt to provide first aid to Feast for the duration of more than five minutes of footage. In fact, Santos can be heard radioing for the first unit that arrives to look for a gun Feast allegedly dropped instead of prioritizing medical attention. Feast was ultimately pronounced dead at a hospital.
Crump said the bodycam footage from the night of Dec. 9 shows without a doubt that the law enforcement narrative is based on conflicting and inconsistent accounts.
“What the video does not show is what was depicted in the story told to CBS News by Sheriff Trochessett, the head of the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office investigation. Sheriff Trochessett, when interviewed by the media two days after the shooting, stated that his investigators told him the video (which he said he had not seen at the time) showed Joshua Feast pointing a gun at Jose Santos before Santos shot and killed him. He also stated that investigators told him that Feast was running towards the officers before turning and running away,” Crump said. “The body cam footage released today shows no such thing. There was no other officer on the scene at the time, so there is only one body cam video capturing the shooting itself. This leads us to conclude that members of the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office—who are responsible for investigating the actions of this officer absent bias or predisposition—instead lied regarding the evidence revealed by the body cam video in order to taint and twist the narrative in the press, offer a justification for Santos’ actions and untruthfully attack the character of the deceased, Joshua Feast.”
Watch the bodycam video below. Please be advised it is disturbing and graphic.
It’s already been established that Santos has a violent past with at least one other young Black male.
Crump previously provided video footage from an incident in 2013 when Santos beat and held a Black man’s head underwater despite his repeated pleas of “I can’t breathe.”
On Wednesday, Crump shared the results from an independent autopsy on Feast that confirmed he was shot in the back.
“It is very consistent with literally what the witness’ accounts were from that night,” Crump said last week. “When it entered, it caused all kinds of damage and literally the injuries caused Joshua Feast to be dead on arrival at the hospital.”
La Marque Police said Feast was wanted for other incidents and recovered a gun at the scene.
Crump on Monday called for an independent investigation and for the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office to recuse itself.
Feast’s mother has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help her son’s two children and to offset the costs of his funeral and legal fees.
“My son was a loving, caring, and god-fearing man, who leaves behind two amazing children whom he loved dearly, five-year old Alayah, and three-year old Joshua Jr,” she wrote. “This fund is established to cover funeral and burial expenses, mental and grief counseling, lodging and travel for all court proceedings, and to assist our family in the days to come as we continue to seek justice for Joshua. A portion of these funds will also go to the Estate of Joshua Feast for the benefit and care of his two children.”
SEE ALSO:
Joshua Feast’s Independent Autopsy Shows He Was Shot In The Back, Confirming Witnesses’ Accounts
Texas Cop Who Shot Unarmed Joshua Feast In The Back Previously Brutalized Another Young Black Man
