DENVER (AP) \u2014 Police in suburban Denver on Friday planned to release body camera footage showing an officer fatally shooting a 14-year-old Black boy they say was armed with a pellet gun.
Police had earlier said that Jor\u2019Dell Richardson had a semiautomatic handgun. The teenager was shot June 2 after a struggle on the ground with police who chased him from a store in Aurora, where he and a group of other teens are suspected of stealing vaping cartridges, authorities said.
In a news conference soon after the shooting, police Chief Art Acevedo said one officer could be heard on the body camera footage saying \u201clet go of the gun.\u201d
Police responded after a member of the city\u2019s gang unit, who happened to be driving by, saw a group of teens wearing hoodies and medical masks approaching a convenience store. Some of the teens left in a stolen minivan after the robbery, while Jor\u2019Dell and another ran in different directions, police said. The other teen was arrested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Police showed the body camera footage to Jor\u2019Dell\u2019s family and lawyers on Tuesday but must wait at least 72 hours after that before releasing it to the public under state law.
In a statement, the family\u2019s attorneys said the video footage \u201cleft them with more questions than answers.\u201d They plan to speak at a news conference after the police release the footage.
A GoFundMe page for Jor\u2019Dell\u2019s family said he was not a \u201cbad kid\u201d and was \u201cassociating with the wrong crowd.\u201d
\u201cHe was loved, talented, and had dreams for his future that will forever remain unfulfilled,\u201d the page said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n