Activists, family want police accountability for shooting
Activists and families rallied near the scene of the police shooting of Terrence Coleman on Shawmut Avenue last night, questioning the police version of events and demanding the arrest of the officers involved.
“We question the police narrative in particular,” Brock Satter of Mass Action Against Police Brutality told the Herald. “We think there needs to be accountability. The police officers that shot Terrence Coleman should be arrested and criminally charged.”
Police Commissioner William B. Evans said the police shot Coleman, 31, who has a history of mental illness, as he menaced them and EMTs with a knife early Sunday morning.
Coleman’s mother, Hope Coleman, had called EMTs to the house to help deal with her son. She has claimed he was unarmed. District Attorney Daniel F. Conley’s office is investigating the shooting.
A woman who identified herself as Coleman’s aunt Faith said last night that even if her nephew had been armed, police are not properly trained to handle people with mental issues.
“The police need to stop the deadly force,” she said outside of Coleman’s Shawmut Avenue home in the South End, where he had his deadly encounter with police. “They need to be trained efficiently on how to handle medical, disabled issues among everyone.”
She said police should have used a stun gun. Coleman’s aunt said of the rally the “support was good.”
On the doorstep of the Coleman family’s brownstone, a sign read, “Blue Lies Murder.” Two bouquets of flowers and a Florida Marlins hat were also on the steps.
Satter objected to Evans’ statements made shortly after the incident.
“He didn’t qualify his statements. They hadn’t conducted an investigation,” Satter said, adding he believes Evans should resign. “Somebody’s not telling the truth. The only people who have a motive not to tell the truth is the police.”
Suggesting a coverup, Satter said, “It happens. It’s not impossible to believe ... Cops do lie and it happens in Boston.”
Satter said his group would like to see any video and police reports, and would like the names of the officers to be released.
Meanwhile, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Economic Justice, in a statement released yesterday, called for an independent investigator and prosecutor on the Coleman case claiming a “conflict of interest” between Suffolk prosecutors and Boston police.
“As it is now, these decisions are often left to local prosecutors whose job necessitates working hand-inhand with police officers on a daily basis.” Boston police spokesman Lt. Det. Michael McCarthy said in a statement last night: “We continue to send our thoughts and prayers to the Coleman family during what must be a difficult time and we are grateful that the EMTs involved in this incident continue to recover from their injuries.”