Family, friends remember the life of a 27-year-old man killed by Baltimore officers

BALTIMORE -- The family of Hunter Jessup, who was killed by the gunfire of Baltimore police officers on Tuesday, held a vigil for him on Saturday.

Family and friends met up near the intersection of Brunswick Street and St Benedict Street to honor the 27-year-old man.

Jessup had been standing on Brunswick Street around 12:30 p.m. when officers attempted to interact with him. He then allegedly took off on Wilkens Avenue.

Baltimore Police Chief Richard Worley said that one of his officers tried to tackle Jessup but fell onto some stairs. It was at that point that Jessup pointed a gun at the officer, police said.

That's when multiple officers discharged their weapons, Worley said.

Their bullets struck and killed Jessup.

The Maryland Office of the Attorney General has said that ballistics indicates Jessup fired his gun during the altercation, too.  

Southwest Baltimore residents filmed officers as they swarmed around Jessup following the shooting and shouted prayers in hopes that he might survive his injuries.

"Just keep breathing," one woman shouted at the gunshot victim as police surrounded him. "In the name of Jesus, keep breathing."

Neighborhood residents who knew Jessup from the neighborhood described him as your all-around good guy who was "not out to cause any trouble."

"It doesn't make sense that they're harassed the way they are," Free Palmese said.

The deadly shooting marked the end of the life of a man who had interacted with officers in the past.

In 2017, Jessup was arrested after he struck a 14-year-old boy on a bicycle while trying to flee from officers following what police described as a routine traffic stop.

Jessup was 20 at the time. He reportedly bailed out of his vehicle and tried to run following the incident with the bicycle, police said.

Witnesses said that at the time of the collision between Jessup's vehicle and the bicycle, officers did not have their lights or sirens on.

Palmese said Jessup was gunned down by officers "in a savage way with no regard for life." She said what she saw in the aftermath of the shooting was "cruelty beyond belief."

"The cops were rude. They were talking derogatory," she said. "They were arguing with them when they weren't yelling—they meaning his brothers and friends—they weren't yelling. They weren't like 'rurururu.' They were distraught, and there was no compassion. There was no sympathy. It was really sad." 

Jessup's family and friends are demanding to see what happened the day he died.

The body camera footage will show people where the stop-and-frisk started and how it turned into a deadly shooting, Jelevon Nolley said.  

"We need this body camera footage," Nolley said. "We need the body camera footage." 

Nolley said he was related to Jessup and rattled by the death of his loved one.  

"They shot my brother 17 times. It's my brother," Nolley said. "I'm with him every day."

Nolley said he wants the officers involved in the deadly shooting held accountable for their actions.

"Justice for Hunter—that's all I want," he said.

The Maryland Office of the Attorney General said earlier this week that the body-worn camera footage could be released within 20 business days.