Protest Set After Man Killed By Grapevine Cop
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GRAPEVINE (CBSDFW.COM) - Family members and friends are saying goodbye on Thursday to the man who was shot last week by an officer with the Grapevine Police Department. His burial comes as a group of activists are rallying for support for the family.
The group is set to gather in a few days for a vigil and protest. They are troubled by police dashboard camera video that shows the last moments of Ruben Villalpando's life. Villalpando was a Mexican national.
Villalpando was stopped by a Officer Robert Clark along Highway 121 in Euless last Friday night. According to a lawyer for the family, the video shows that Villalpando was unarmed and following the police orders, despite him being called derogatory names.
Supporters for the family said that the shooting is worse than what happened in Ferguson, Missouri.
The incident began in Grapevine, but moved into Euless after a police chase. During a conference on Thursday, officials with the Euless Police Department said that the video could not be released. But the man was not following commands, authorities said, and no racial slurs were heard -- despite what the family maintains.
The victim's brother-in-law wants the video to be seen by everyone. "It's not just for us," he said. "We don't want this to happen to anybody of any race."
The Euless Police Department is now handling the investigation into the shooting. They met with the Consol General of Mexico on Thursday. Based on the evidence, the top Mexican diplomat thinks that the shooting was unjustified. He has condemned the killing, and hopes that this is not the start of a trend.
Meanwhile, DFW activists are set to meet at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday night for a vigil and protest outside of the Grapevine Police Department's headquarters. They are calling for an independent investigation by the U.S. Justice Department.
Some of the family's supporters are even calling for a boycott of Grapevine Mills Mall, targeting the city's economy.