Condemnation After Police Killing Of Unarmed 17-Year-Old Is Swift, Resolute In Calls For Justice

AUSTIN, TX -- From family members to social justice organizations, reaction to the police killing of an unarmed 17-year-old boy at the hands of police this week was swift and vigorous in its calls for a robust investigation.

On Monday, Austin Police Department police officer Geoffrey Freeman -- a veteran of the force for more than ten years -- shot David Joseph, 17, after the young man allegedly charged at him, ignoring the officer’s commands to stop.

At a press conference the next day, a police spokesman confirmed the African American high school student was unarmed at the time of the confrontation.

Freeman, an African American officer, had responded to the scene following calls from residents in the 1200 block of Nature’s Bend in the city’s northeast portion of a naked man roaming the neighborhood, acting erratically.

During the press conference, police also said the shooting came within seconds of the confrontation.

A police spokesman dismissed a reporter’s question as to whether mental illness may have played a part in the dead man’s behavior, given that Joseph was not wearing any clothes at the time of his death.

“Now is not the day,” Austin Police Chief of Staff Brian Manley said in dismissing the reporter’s question about the young man’s state of mental health at the time of his death.

The officer fired twice at Joseph, who was taken to a Round Rock hospital where he later died.

The family of the dead boy released a statement late Monday expressing their hopes for a full investigation into what prompted the officer to exert lethal measures.

“Our family is devastated today by the loss of our beloved son and brother, David,” the family’s statement read. “We are shocked and saddened that he was taken from us in an unexpected and violent way, and are struggling to understand how our child was stolen from us by the police.”

Like others in the community, the family wonders why a standard-issue Taser wasn’t used in lieu of the lethal means of a police pistol.

“David was a high school senior who dreamed of going to college this fall,” his family said. “He played football and soccer for his school, and loved to listen to music. He had a life full of possibilities in front of him.”

In their grief, the family members called for a full investigation into the matter.

“We want a full and fair investigation into what led officer Freeman to kill David,” they wrote. “David had no weapon. We do not know what led to his meeting with officer Freeman, but we know that our David should not have been taken away. No family should have to suffer like we are today.”

Others joined in the family’s call for a full and thorough police investigation into the killing, including the American Civil Liberties Union.

“Last year, the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing released its recommendations for building public trust by focusing on police accountability and training,” ACLU members wrote. “It’s clear that officers whose first instinct is to reach for their guns pose a threat to communities of color.

“The need is urgent. Officers must be provided with de-escalation training and law enforcement agencies must hold officers who use excessive and lethal force to account. We cannot afford another loss of life.”
Nelson Linder, president of the Austin chapter of the NAACP told KDFW/Fox 4 News that he believes the shooting death at the hands of police is illegal.

“We see a rush to judgment and, as a result, somebody is dead,” Linder told the station. “Normally, it’s always somebody black, in this city and this country. I don’t see how a young man who’s naked, and not hurting anybody, winds up being dead.”

Confronted with such a scenario, the officer should’ve reacted differently, Linder said: “When in reality, those things require constraint and understanding as opposed to deadly force.”

James Harrington, director of the Texas Civil Rights Project, also called for a full investigation.

“It is almost incomprehensible that a young, naked man would be considered dangerous, such that a police officer would kill him,” Harrington wrote. “The fact that a 17-year-old was apparently unarmed raised even more serious questions about police violence.”

In his statement, Harrington made reference to a 2004 complaint by the NAACP to the U.S. Department of Justice decrying a perceived level of disproportionate number of officer-related shootings in Austin. The complaint led to the federal agency outlining 164 recommendation for the local police force to follow, most of which police brass said were implemented.

Harrington said it appears, with the latest officer-related shooting -- one of several in the last year alone -- that the pattern of lethal force by police continues to this day.

“This is the pattern that led to the U.S. Department of Investigation a few years back, and it appears the pattern of police shootings continues. We intend to pursue this matter with the Department of Justice once more.”

Joseph was a student at Connally High School in the Pflugerville ISD before transferring to the Premier HIgh School charter school in Austin.

Police said they would continue to investigate the matter, including examining police dash cam footage that partially captured the confrontation.

Meanwhile, members of the Austin Justice Coalition plan a protest over the incident after having met Tuesday to discuss the matter.