|
John,
For most kids, Saturday mornings are spent watching cartoons, sleeping in, or playing outside — not being shot at by the police. But that’s exactly what happened to a group of Black children in Waycross, Georgia on Saturday.
Here’s what we know: A Black 16-year-old was driving his younger siblings home before heading to a football game. Waycross Police Officer Jesse Shook began following the car after the driver allegedly ran a stop sign, but Officer Shook never turned on his sirens or flashed his lights to tell the young driver to pull over. Instead, the cop followed the kids home. Scared and confused, the 16-year-old stopped the car at an intersection near their home and told the younger kids in the back seat — his 9-year-old brother, 12-year-old sister, and a 14-year-old friend — to run home to get their father.
That’s when a second officer, Lt. Scott Rowell, arrived at the scene and opened fire on the car and the children.1 The youngest child said at least seven shots were fired and that one bullet nearly struck him as he ran.2 Thankfully, neither the children nor anyone in the Waycross neighborhood was hit by the bullets — but according to a witness, one of the children was pistol-whipped by the police.3
Officer Shook and Lt. Rowell’s reckless and racist decision to target, tailgate, and open fire on a group of Black kids is reprehensible. Both officers are now on paid administrative leave, and an investigation is ongoing. But it doesn’t take an investigation to know this: Both police officers must be held accountable for their actions.
John, this isn’t the first time Lt. Scott Rowell was a part of an officer-involved shooting. In 2013, Alicia Herron called 911 for medical assistance when she noticed that her fiance, Jack Lamar Roberson, was acting erratically after taking his blood sugar medication. Instead of paramedics, Rowell and two other police officers showed up. The officers did nothing to de-escalate the situation or provide the medical assistance Roberson clearly needed.
Unfortunately — as is often the case when cops are dispatched to handle medical and mental health emergencies, particularly involving Black people — the police officers only made matters worse. Minutes after they arrived on the scene, Lt. Rowell and his partners shot and killed Roberson in front of his mother and his fianceé.4 Both women confirmed he was unarmed, yet the Georgia Bureau of Investigation cleared the officers of any criminal wrongdoing — allowing Rowell to return to the force and continue terrorizing Black people.5
Last Saturday, 7 years after the murder of Jack Lamar Roberson, Lt. Rowell responded to another non-violent situation with unnecessary use of force. He fired a gun at a group of Black children, in their neighborhood, in front of their father. This time, Rowell will be held accountable for his actions.
In an interview, the children’s father expressed a fear Black parents know all too well: That their child could be the next victim of police brutality — their life cut short, reduced to a Twitter hashtag. “Officer Rowell was shooting at our babies...How are they going to protect us when they’re shooting at us?” Dominique Goodman Sr. asked. “They are babies. What was the purpose of shooting?”6
What happened in Waycross on Saturday — which could have ended in tragedy — never should have happened in the first place. And sadly, the incident only highlights a sad, dangerous truth in America: Black people are living in terror.
Young Black children are afraid of the police because they know that one altercation with a cop could kill them. They’ve seen it happen before. Officers Shook and Rowell made that nightmare real by opening fire on the children as they literally ran for their lives.
Black children in Waycross — and everywhere — deserve to feel safe. And it’s up to us to hold reckless and racist cops accountable.
Tell Mayor James: Fire Officers Shook and Rowell now.
Until justice is real,
-- Scott, Rashad, Arisha, Erika, Malachi, Marybeth, Leonard, Madison, Ernie, McKayla and the rest of the Color Of Change team
References:
1. Two police officers in Georgia put on leave after shooting at minors. 9 August 2020, CNN.
2. Waycross police shoot at teens following traffic stop, GBI says. 8 August 2020, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC).
3. Georgia Cops Open Fire on Kids Running Home to get Father after Traffic Stop. 8 August 2020, Pinac News.
4. Police Fatally Shoot Man After Family Calls For Medical Assistance. 8 October 2013, Huffington Post.
5. GBI report clears Waycross police officers in October shooting death, DA says. 25 February 2014, The Florida Times-Union.
6. Georgia family says cops shot at a car full of unarmed children, report says. 8 August 2020, New York Post.
Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Please help keep our movement strong.
