Mother of black man killed by police seeks independent probe

The mother of a black man who was fatally shot by an Indianapolis police officer plans to call for an independent investigation of his death last month following a foot chase.

Demetree Wynn and her family’s attorneys said in a news release they would hold a news conference Wednesday in which they would call for an independent investigation of the May 6 killing of 21-year-old Dreasjon “Sean” Reed. They will also demand the release of the Marion County Coroner’s autopsy report and the disclosure of the names of officers involved in his shooting.

The family’s demands come at a time of nationwide protests over the treatment of black people by police following the death of George Floyd, a handcuffed black man who died May 25 after a white Minneapolis officer used his knee to pin down Floyd’s neck for several minutes while he pleaded for air.

Reed’s mother also plans to ask for the release of the recorded comments an officer made shortly after her son’s shooting and for more witnesses to come forward.

Police said they began pursuing Reed after officers, including Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Chief Randal Taylor, saw someone driving recklessly on an interstate. Supervisors ordered an end to that pursuit because the vehicle was going nearly 90 mph, police said.

But an officer later spotted the car on a city street before it was parked, and the officer then chased Reed on foot. Assistant Chief Chris Bailey said Reed had exchanged gunfire with the officer, who is African American, according to the The Indianapolis Star. Bailey said a gun found near Reed appeared to have been fired at least twice.

But the family said in a statement that witnesses have told the family’s attorneys that this wasn’t the case.

“Every witness that spoke with Mr. Reed’s family’s attorneys has disputed that Mr. Reed brandished a weapon or shot a gun before he was shot to death. Mr. Reed’s family is committed to fighting for the truth about what happened that fateful day,” the statement said.

A video released by the family and reviewed by The Indianapolis Star that was apparently recorded in the moments after Reed’s death captures the voices of three women describing what they say they witnessed while driving near the shooting scene.

The woman recording the video said she, her mother, her sister and two other people had just witnessed Reed’s shooting.

“They killed this man for no reason. Shot this man in his back,” said the woman who was recording the video. “Dude was running, dude was running.”

“He was on the ground shaking. They still shot this man,” she said. “After they Tased him, he was on the ground defenseless. Dude couldn’t do nothing and they shot him.”

None of those witnesses are identified in the video, and the family didn’t identify any of them in its news release.

Mayor Joe Hogsett has asked the U.S. attorney’s office and the FBI to “actively monitor” the investigations into Reed’s shooting and the fatal police shooting of another man hours later.

Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears has asked a court to appoint an independent prosecutor to handle the investigation into Reed’s shooting, because Taylor is a witness in the case.

Mears’ office didn’t immediately reply to a message left Wednesday asking whether an independent prosecutor had been appointed.

Events surrounding Reed’s shooting were livestreamed on Facebook, apparently by Reed’s cellphone. That video includes audio from a police detective after Reed’s shooting saying: “I think it’s going to be a closed casket, homie,” an apparent reference to a closed-casket funeral.

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department suspended that detective for those remarks, which Taylor said were “unacceptable.”