COLORADO SPRINGS — The Colorado Springs Police Department has released body camera video of the Aug. 3 officer-involved shooting that killed 19-year-old De'Von Bailey. The announcement came a few short hours before the family attorney released the full coroner's report, the sheriff's office announced they've wrapped up the investigation, and the 4th Judicial District Attorney's office stating a review of the evidence will take several weeks.
The video shows 911 call audio from someone about a robbery involving a weapon, then cuts over to body camera video from two officers as they question De'Von Bailey and his cousin. It shows Bailey and another person putting their hands up when police arrive, and when they are asked if any one of them are armed, Bailey begins to run away. The officer with the bodycam chased Bailey and pulled out his weapon, yelling, "Hands up! Hands up!"
That's when officers at the scene, identified as Sgt. Vant Land and Officer Evenson, chase and fire multiple shots at Bailey. It appears officers fired at least 8 times as Bailey had his back turned to them. Bailey fell to the ground and an officer again yelled, "Hands up! Hands up!" Bailey lifted one hand and then fell back to the ground.
Police are also seen cutting away Bailey's pants, which show the outline of a gun. Investigators had previously told News5 a weapon was recovered from the scene and is being stored in evidence.
Home surveillance video previously obtained by News5 shows the final seconds of the shooting and when another officer arrives to assist in providing first aid to Bailey.
According to preliminary information from the sheriff's office, Colorado Springs police officers were called to a report of an armed personal robbery in the 2400 block of E. Fountain Blvd. on Aug. 3 at 6:45 p.m. Investigators say officers attempted to stop 19-year-old Bailey and another suspect after the alleged victims identified them. They said there was an attempt to a pull a gun.
The video shows officers briefly talk to Bailey before chasing him to the 2100 block of Preuss Street, where the pursuit ended. That's approximately .3 miles from the 2400 block of E. Fountain Blvd., where the original call came from.
Watch the unedited video of the shooting
CSPD OIS August 3 2019 from COS Police Department on Vimeo.
Family attorneys react
Attorneys representing the family of De'Von Bailey held a news conference this afternoon, once again questioning the actions of the officers and demanding a independent investigation.
Attorneys Darold Killmer and Mari Newman said the body camera video showed that Bailey was not presenting a threat to officers at the scene. Killmer argued that it was not obvious that Bailey was reaching for a gun in his waistband, therefore he argued police were not justified in shooting and killing Bailey.
"Even in this case there could be a sincere concern for the safety of the community," Killmer said. "But that is not the legal standard that officers are held to. Officers are trained to be restrained, restraint on their use of force and to use less than deadly force except when it's absolutely necessary."
"Police don't have unlimited right to use their guns to apprehend people. That's called using deadly force. A weapon, for obvious reasons, such as a gun, is deadly force," Killmer said.
Lawyers representing the Bailey family said the El Paso County Sheriff's Office could not be trusted to handle the investigation, citing potential conflicts of interest among investigators.
A few hours after the news conference, the law firm sent out the full El Paso County Coroner's Office autopsy report. The coroner's report details 4 gunshot wounds to the back and lower right arm. "The wounds collectively perforated the heart, left lung, diaphragm, and penetrated the spleen, resulting in massive blood loss and his subsequent death."
Read the full document for yourself - CLICK HERE
How officer-involved shooting investigations are managed
The El Paso County Sheriff's Office's investigation into the incident continues as called for under Colorado law. The 4th Judicial District has not yet determined whether or not to charge the officers involved in the shooting. The coroner's report has not yet been released either.
El Paso County Sheriff's Office Public Information Officer Natalie Sosa responded to the calls for an independent investigation by saying the sheriff's office is following Colorado law by investigating the shooting. She said the sheriff's office will not have any further comment while the case remains under investigation.
Mayor John Suthers said previously that he supports the release of the body camera video in the investigation, yet did not support the idea of an independent investigation. "My personal feeling is between the dispatch tapes and the body camera tapes, that what transpired here is going to be pretty clear to everybody," Suthers said. He also said on Tuesday that he had seen some of the body camera footage.
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