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A little over a week after the fatal shooting of Justin Robinson, Washington D.C. police have released the related bodycam footage. The 26-year-old was well known in the area as a violence interrupter for the city’s Cure The Streets program. His family had initially opposed the release of the footage. However, according to Fox5, they changed their minds this past weekend, leading to its release on Monday (Sept. 9).
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Bodycam Footage Shows Justin Robinson’s Interaction With D.C. Cops
According to The Washington Post, the fatal shooting occurred on Sept. 1. Local police had responded to a car crash outside of a McDonald’s in the southeast area, specifically the 2500 block of Marion Barry Avenue. When they arrived on the scene, Robinson was reportedly unconscious in the restaurant’s drive-thru with what looked like a gun in his lap. Two officers claimed they opened fire on Robinson after he allegedly attempted to grab an officer’s gun and refused to put his weapon down. Robinson died on the scene.
The now-released footage consists of two videos between 18 and 19 minutes long. At the start, the officers can be heard discussing how to unlock and remove Justin from the car. Video footage shows at least six officers on the scene. Ultimately, they decided to block the car by parking their vehicles in front and behind it. While this conversation was happening, Justin regained consciousness. In the footage, one officer yelled, “We got movement,” and then they approached the car, yelling for Justin to remove his hands from the gun and put them up.
After Robinson partially rolled his window down, Officer Bryan Gilchrist pointed his weapon through it at Justin. According to the video and police, the 26-year-old reached for the officer’s gun and grabbed it with his left hand. At that point, Officer Gilchrist reportedly yelled, “I’ll shoot you in your f**king face,” before firing 10 shots at the 26-year-old, per The Washington Post. Another officer, Vasco Mateus, fired an additional shot.
Afterward, the video shows a weapon dropping into Justin’s lap, which the police chief said Justin was holding in his left hand. Officers continued to yell for Justin to put his hands up before opening the door, yanking his body out, and administering medical assistance.
TRIGGER WARNING: Watch the bodycam footage below.
Here’s What Happens Next
The two officers who fired their guns, Gilchrist and Mateus, have been placed on paid administrative leave, per Washington Post. Additionally, the U.S. Attorney’s Office is investigating the incident. After their investigation wraps up, MPD will conduct an internal investigation.
An attorney for Justin Robinson’s family has spoken out about the narrative that Justin grabbed the officer’s gun. Instead, Attorney Brandon Burrell says Robinson had a “natural reaction” to waking up with a gun in his face.
“He woke up to a firearm inches from his face. He had a natural inclination to move the firearm away. MPD officers began discharging their weapons and continue to fire upon Justin even after they backed up out of his reach. What happened to Justin was not de-escalation, it wasn’t proportional, and it wasn’t reasonable. It was brutality,” Burrell stated, per TWP.
This is a developing story.
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