The father of a 19-year-old man shot and killed by Colorado Springs policelast week says a surveillance video clearly shows his son was shot in the back while running, and he wants justice.
De’Von Bailey, 19, was shot by at least one Colorado Springs police officer Saturday in the 2400 block of East Fountain Boulevard when police were responding to a report of a personal robbery, the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said Sunday. The person who reported being robbed identified two suspects, and one of the suspects — Bailey — allegedly reached for a gun before police shot him, according to the sheriff’s office. Police said they recovered a gun at the scene.
Bailey was transported to a hospital, where police said he later died of his injuries. The two Colorado Springs police officers involved in the shooting, who have not been publicly identified, are on administrative leave, per protocol.
The shooting of the black man by white police officers has spurred protests in Colorado Springs, and on Monday two bail bondsmen were arrested after they were accused of drawing guns during a fight with protesters, according to The Associated Press.
In the video, a black man can be seen running away from two officers and then falling to the ground. The officers who are chasing him have their guns drawn. Bailey does not appear to be holding anything in his hands.
Bailey is sitting up at first, and then officers roll him over on the ground and appear to handcuff him. A third officer then runs toward them. As other first responders arrive and appear to render aid, people from the apartment complex pass by and watch the incident.
Greg Bailey believes his son didn’t have a gun on him. “How can you hold a pistol in basketball shorts?” he asked.
Even if he did, Bailey said he’s “1,000 percent” sure that his son didn’t reach for it. “Who would, in their right mind, reach for their firearm when they’re outnumbered anyway?” he asked.
The issue isn’t even about a white cop killing a black man, Bailey said.
“It’s about right and wrong,” he said. “These are the people who are supposed to protect us. In no way, shape or form did they have to shoot him in his back.”
Bailey wants justice, he said, although he’s not sure what that means.
“You can’t bring back my son,” he said. “I don’t know what justice would look like to me because that cop will never feel what I feel.”
He called the young man his “mini-me.”
“He cared about everybody,” Bailey said. “He was very giving. He liked to laugh. He was goofy.”