Bodycam footage released Monday appears to show a Mississippi police officer shooting an 11-year-old boy during a response to a 911 call, New York Post reported.
Officer Greg Capers responded to a 911 call made by young Aderrien Murry about his mother’s ex-boyfriend’s threatening presence. He was struggling to enter the family home as seen in the newly released footage, New York Post noted. Once inside, the situation rapidly escalated.
The officer had his gun drawn. He demanded the location of the ex-boyfriend and inquired about potential weapons in the house. “Where’s he at? Where’s he at?” the officer said, according to the New York Post. “Does he have any weapons? Come out, sir, don’t make us come in.” (RELATED: Video Shows Police Officers Chasing Man With No Legs Before Shooting Him)
The video captured the moment when Aderrien, with his hands raised, suddenly appears in the officer’s view. Mistaking his actions, Capers shoots the boy in the chest, leading to immediate expressions of shock and distress from both the officer and the boy, according to the New York Post.
Harrowing video shows cop shooting 11-year-old boy who called 911 https://t.co/el55PzwLZt pic.twitter.com/lI1TvXt3yS
— New York Post (@nypost) January 9, 2024
Aderrien’s mother, Nakala Murry, has since filed a $5 million lawsuit against the police department, advocating for the release of the bodycam footage and the dismissal of Capers and Police Chief Ronald Sampson. Despite the Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office presenting the case to a Sunflower County grand jury, Capers was not indicted.
Nakala claims the tragic incident could have been prevented with proper police training. She seeks justice for her son as the lawsuit continues. “Things need to change. People need to show more accountability, laws need to be [changed],” Nakala Murry told NPR.
“People who you think [would] have your back, even officials, they don’t. And you think people will be for what’s right. But this incident taught me it doesn’t happen like that.”
Aderrien, recounting his ordeal on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” described the shooting pain and his subsequent actions of singing gospel verses and praying while his mother tended to his injuries, the New York Post reported
“It felt like a Taser, like a big punch to the chest,” Aderrien said, according to the New York Post. “I was bleeding — bleeding from my mouth.”
He suffered a collapsed lung and a cut liver but credits his survival to divine intervention.