Kim Kardashian Demands Justice For Stephon Clark
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — A call for justice from perhaps the most famous woman on social media is putting a national spotlight on Sacramento.
A single tweet sent by Kim Kardashian to her 6.5 million Twitter followers and 179 million followers on Instagram is bringing new attention to Stephon Clark and the Sacramento officers who shot and killed him in 2018.
On March 18, 2018 Stephon Clark was murdered by Sacramento police in his grandmother's backyard. He was a father of 2 & shot over 20 times by the officers. Please sign this petition to demand justice for the family of Stephon Clark #JusticeForStephonClark https://t.co/LL6KMkENdK pic.twitter.com/lX0S5i2RK8
— Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian) July 10, 2020
"It makes it very clear to me that the world understands, not just you and me, but Kim Kardashian understands that the officers who killed my brother in my grandmother's backyard while he was unarmed should be held accountable," said Stephon's brother, Stevante Clark.
In her social media posts to Instagram and Twitter, Kardashian is asking for people to sign a petition to indict the two officers who shot Clark. Stevante Clark has not had contact with Kardashian, but hopes her recognition will help in his fight for justice.
"What I'm hoping is that people get this message from Kim Kardashian West and the Clark family, that what happened to Stephon shouldn't have happened and the goal is to prevent that from ever, ever happening again," he said.
Stevante hopes with her exposure to his brother's death, she can help push for to make "Stephon Clark's Law" also known as Assembly Bill 392 a national model. The law passed by Governor Newsom in 2019 creates tougher standards for when law enforcement officers can kill someone.
Kardashian has helped in the effort to get multiple people released from jail. She is also vocal about social justice issues and prison reform. Tiana Parker, Stephon's sister, reached out to Kardashian on Instagram after modeling for her KKW Beauty Brand.
"Even if it does not go further I'm just really grateful for the help. I'm just grateful that we have allies in this situation and that is what we need," she said.
Kardashian, who recently featured Tiana on her Instagram, told CBS13 that when the model contacted her she loved connecting with her and learning about her brother's tragic story. She is happy that light is being brought to the case. She explained that she is passionate about getting the word out.
Parker said her family has attempted to start petitions in the past, but they failed due to not receiving enough signatures. The petition shared by Kardashian now has more than 17,000 signatures.
"We need the allies, anyone with privilege, please help. Don't just swipe and say 'sorry for your loss', we have to start doing action towards this," Parker explained.
County and State officials declined to file charges against the officers. Sacramento Attorney Mark Reichel believes the new spotlight could change that.
"I think Kim Kardashian's involvement will help this substantially. I think this is a major platform. Stephon Clark's murder is well known around American anyways and when you add Kim Kardashian to that, that platform is spread out far and wide," Reichel said.
The city of Sacramento awarded Clark's two children $2.4 million in a settlement last year. Despite District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert's decision to not criminally charge the officers, Reichel said with new leadership that could change.
"If a new DA is elected in the next couple of years, they could actually bring those charges if they wanted to. As well, there is actually no double jeopardy between the state and the federal government," he explained.
If that were to happen he believes the chances of officers being brought to court would be high.
"I'd say the odds are very high that person is going to take a really close look at all the facts and determine whether to bring civil rights charges against those officers," said Reichel.
It is not clear is Kardashian will continue to be involved in these efforts, but she tells CBS13 she is sending her best to Tiana and her family.