The car drove away from the high school house party, down a street in a Dallas suburb, when the police officer raised his rifle and fired.
A bullet tore through the front passenger window, killing Jordan Edwards, an unarmed 15-year-old.
As the death reignited a national conversation about race and the police, it's also elevated what's viewed as a well-understood fact in many African American communities: When you're black — even if you're a child — you can be viewed as a threat to police.
"These are trained professionals, who are supposed to make rational decisions, but they're not," said Benjamin Crump, a civil rights attorney and former president of the National Bar Association, a network of black lawyers and judges. "And yet again our children — I repeat, children — are paying the ultimate price."
Crump spoke Saturday, the day a funeral was held for Jordan.
Hours before the funeral, former Balch Springs police officer Roy Oliver walked out of jail after posting a $300,000 bond. Oliver was arrested Friday and charged with murder. He was fired from the Balch Springs Police Department for what Chief Jonathan Haber called "violations" in protocol.
Credit: Parker County Sheriff's Office
Credit: Parker County Sheriff's Office
The death of Tamir Rice
Jordan's death echoes other police shootings involving black boys.
In November 2014, Cleveland police got a 911 call about someone brandishing a pistol near a park. The weapon, the caller said, was "probably fake." Still, soon after — in an incident captured on camera — a police cruiser pulled into the park.
Officer Timothy Loehmann jumped out and opened fire and, within seconds, 12-year-old Tamir Rice was dead.
Even before Tamir's death the Department of Justice had been investigating the Cleveland Police Department. A month after his shooting, it released a report saying Cleveland police displayed a pattern of using unnecessary force.
Credit: Jose Luis Magana
Credit: Jose Luis Magana
A year later, a grand jury decided not to indict Loehmann in Tamir's death, saying he had reason to fear for his life.
‘Straight to lethal force’
Last year, in Columbus, Ohio, police shot and killed Tyre King, 13, who was carrying a BB gun while running from police. The case is set to go before a grand jury that will consider criminal charges.
Chanda Brown, a Columbus-based attorney who represents the King family, said Saturday that the lives of young black males are not being valued.
"These are not violent events, yet we're seeing police go straight to lethal force," Brown said. "Just being black can be threatening to police and others."
Study: Black kids mostly affected
A 2014 study released by the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that black children are more likely to be the subjects of dehumanization by police officers, in turn making them subject to higher rates of police violence.
"Children in most societies are considered to be in a distinct group with characteristics such as innocence and the need for protection. Our research found that black boys can be seen as responsible for their actions at an age when white boys still benefit from the assumption that children are essentially innocent," Dr. Phillip Atiba Goff, one of the study's authors, told the American Psychological Association at the time.
Credit: Photo courtesy of the Trayvon Martin Family via AP
Credit: Photo courtesy of the Trayvon Martin Family via AP
The Trayvon Martin case
Parallels from the study could be seen in the case of Trayvon Martin, 17, whose death triggered protests around the country. He was not shot by a police officer, but George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who killed him, viewed the teen as a threat.
In 2012, as Martin walked home from a convenience store in Sanford, Fla., Zimmerman called 911 to report that the teenager appeared to be "up to no good." Martin wore a hoodie and carried a bag of Skittles and a can of iced tea. The two got into a physical altercation, during which Zimmerman fatally shot the unarmed Martin.
"More and more we have to prepare our children for what's ahead and how society will view them," said Crump, who helped represent Martin's family in legal proceedings.
A call for diversity training
Reggie Miller, chairman of the National Black Police Association, which seeks, among other things, to forge better relationships between police and minority communities, said diversity training could help.
"It's not a crime to be young and black," he said. "But some officers see a do-rag or dreads and feel threatened. More understanding is needed."
Cheryl Dorsey, a retired Los Angeles Police Department sergeant, said that more must be done by police to prevent such shootings.
"Do a lot of police feel that their lives are threatened? It's doubtful," Dorsey said. "I think it's what's put forward to justify shootings."
Credit: Louis DeLuca
Credit: Louis DeLuca
A fateful night for 15-year-old
The events leading to Jordan's death played out the night of April 29, after police responded to complaints about a loud house party in Balch Springs. Oliver initially told investigators the car Jordan was riding in backed up aggressively toward officers. But Haber, the police chief, said body-camera video showed that the car was pulling away from officers. Oliver was fired the following Tuesday.
The charges against the officer came the same week there were developments in two other cases involving police and adult black males, adults in these cases.
A white former South Carolina police officer, Michael T. Slager, pleaded guilty to violating the civil rights of Walter Scott when he shot and killed the unarmed man two years ago. Meanwhile, the Justice Department declined to bring charges against white police officers involved in the shooting death of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, La. After a 10-month investigation, authorities said there was insufficient evidence to prosecute the officers.
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