Family Of Man Killed By Police In Tacony Wants Officer Charged With Murder
Follow CBSPHILLY Facebook | Twitter
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The family of the unarmed man who was shot dead by a Philadelphia police officer in Tacony is calling for the security video of the incident to be released to the public.
For the first time, the family of Jeffrey Dennis is describing the pain they've been enduring since the father of three was shot and killed by an undercover Philadelphia police officer last week.
That's when police say the officers were in the area serving a search warrant at Dennis' home related to drugs. But when they found Dennis driving a black Toyota Camry, the officers, in unmarked police cruisers, suddenly blocked the Camry.
Authorities say six plainclothes officers got out, and holding guns, approached Dennis's car, yelling commands to Dennis to stop driving. Police then say Dennis ignored the commands and began driving erratically, striking one of the officers. Then one of the undercover officers fired three times at Dennis, killing him.
Family Lawyer Raising Concerns About Deadly Police-Involved Shooting In Tacony
"When you see your loved ones last moments it breaks your heart and it rips you apart," said Robert Lewis, who is Dennis' brother-in-law.
Today at first district police headquarters, Dennis's family tried holding back tears after they, along with their attorney met with the state attorney general's office to review security video of the incident.
Three officers were injured during the ordeal and police say the officers had no idea if Dennis was armed. But Dennis' family attorney says at the time there was no way Dennis could have known the undercover officers were, in fact, law enforcement.
"What we have is unmarked cars coming around the corner and slamming into Dennis. Mr. Dennis then attempted to evade these plainclothes men pointing guns at him by maneuvering his car away from them. That behavior is completely rational," said Lee Merritt, who is representing the family.
Dennis' family says the video proves the shooting was unjustified.
The family also says they want the officer who shot Dennis to be charged with murder.
The Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office says they are still investigating the shooting.
