Autopsy shows man shot 7 times from behind

SACRAMENTO, CALIF.» Sacramento police shot Stephon Clark seven times from behind, according to autopsy results released Friday by a pathologist hired by Clark’s family, a finding that calls into question the department’s assertion the 22-year-old black man was facing officers and moving toward them when he was killed.

Dr. Bennet Omalu, whose study of a degenerative brain condition in football players prompted the NFL to adopt new safety rules designed to prevent concussions, also determined Clark took three to 10 minutes to die. Police waited about five minutes before rendering medical aid.

“The proposition that has been presented that he was assailing the officers, meaning he was facing the officers, is inconsistent with the prevailing forensic evidence,” Omalu said at a news conference. He said it was not clear if Clark would have survived had he gotten immediate medical attention.

Sacramento police responded with a brief statement that said the department had not yet received an official autopsy report from the Sacramento County coroner’s office.The coroner’s death investigation is independent from the investigation being conducted by police and the state Department of Justice.

Police video of the shooting doesn’t clearly capture what happened after Clark ran into his grandmother’s backyard. He initially moved toward the officers, who are peeking out from behind a corner of the house, but it’s not clear he’s facing them or that he knows they are there when they open fire after shouting “gun, gun, gun.”

After 20 shots, officers call to him, apparently believing he might still be alive and armed. They eventually approach and find no gun, just a cellphone.

The shooting has produced angry but peaceful protests. The autopsy heightened calls for justice and skepticism toward police among community activists.