How was Andrew Brown Jr. killed? Why did the SBI investigate? Answers to questions.
The April 21 shooting of Andrew Brown Jr. by Pasquotank County sheriff’s deputies prompted peaceful protests for weeks, with residents and activists from across North Carolina and the nation seeking answers about the circumstances of his death. On Tuesday, the district attorney for Pasquotank County said the shooting was “justified” and no charges would be filed against deputies.
We’ve compiled questions and answers about the case here.
Who was Andrew Brown Jr.?
Andrew Brown Jr. was a 42-year-old native of Elizabeth City, NC, known as Drew to family and friends.
He grew up in the Debry public housing complex in Elizabeth City. His father went to prison when Andrew Jr. was 9 years old, and his mother was murdered in 1997.
Brown had 10 children and lived in the house on Perry Street where he was killed.
Did Brown have a criminal record?
Brown had a criminal record, and served his first stint in prison, for drug trafficking, at the age of 20.
Most of his convictions were for drug-related felonies, mostly possessing and selling cocaine or marijuana. Two convictions were for assault, both more than 20 years ago, and the rest were misdemeanors or traffic offenses.
Why were deputies serving warrants on Brown?
Law enforcement started investigating Brown off of a confidential source tip that Brown was selling drugs in Dare County, according to the district attorney for Pasquotank County, Andrew Womble.
As a result of the investigation, which included undercover buys from Brown of cocaine and heroin that was laced with fentanyl, Pasquotank County deputies had two felony arrest warrants for the sale of controlled substances, in addition to search warrants.
How was Brown killed?
Brown died on the morning of April 21 after being shot by sheriff’s deputies who came to his house to serve arrest and search warrants related to drug charges.
Security footage shows a truck loaded with officers in tactical gear and weapons pulling up to Brown’s home just before the shooting.
Brown was sitting in his car in his driveway when the deputies arrived, then attempted to flee. That’s when he was shot by deputies.
DA Womble said deputies were told that Brown was not known to carry weapons. There were no weapons found in the vehicle.
Will the DA file charges in the Brown shooting?
Womble said on Tuesday that he will not bring criminal charges against the sheriff’s deputies who shot and killed Brown, because he believes the shooting was justified.
Why does the DA think the shooting was justified?
Womble said in a press conference that Brown’s death was “tragic” but “justified,” because Brown’s actions caused three deputies to “reasonably believe it was necessary to use deadly force to protect themselves and others.”
Womble said that Brown struck a deputy with his vehicle while trying to escape, and that “deputies immediately perceived a threat.” Womble added that the officers were not required to wait for injury and that the threat alone justified deadly force.
Attorney Bakari Sellers, one of the national lawyers who had represented the Brown family, tweeted that Brown was not using his vehicle as a weapon. Sellers tweeted: “The ‘contact’ was minimal at best & initiated by officers. He was beyond law enforcement when multiple shots were fired, including kill shot to the back of head. 4 officers didn’t shoot, didn’t feel life was in danger.”
Has the police body cam footage been released?
A judge has declined to release the footage from police body-worn cameras, but that decision could be reconsidered following the outcome of the State Bureau of Investigation’s report on the case.
On Tuesday, Womble showed clips and photos from the cameras. Apart from the clips shown at the press conference, Brown’s family was allowed to view a clip on April 26.
The family is calling for the release of the full video.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and state Attorney General Josh Stein have also called for the release of the video.
Why is the SBI investigating the shooting?
It’s customary in North Carolina for the State Bureau of Investigation to look into shootings by law enforcement. The agency then turns over its findings to the local district attorney to determine whether charges are warranted.
Have Brown’s autopsy results been released?
The official autopsy results have not been released, but at Tuesday’s press conference, DA Womble said Brown was shot twice — in the shoulder and the back of the head — with shrapnel wounds elsewhere.
A private autopsy commissioned by the family showed he was hit by at least five bullets, with the fatal wound from a shot into the back of his head.
Are the deputies who shot Brown still on the force?
Seven deputies were placed on administrative leave immediately following the incident, but Sheriff Tommy Wooten said four deputies who did not fire their weapons and were later put back on active duty.
On Tuesday, following the announcement by the district attorney, Wooten announced that the three deputies on leave would keep their jobs, but would be disciplined and retrained.
Why is the Pasquotank sheriff disciplining deputies?
Wooten said the incident, which was reviewed by an outside expert, revealed some areas for improvement, and that deputies would be disciplined and that the SWAT team would be reconfigured and re-trained.
Wooten said two deputies did not turn on their body cameras, and they would be disciplined for that.
The SWAT team was also supposed to have an EMS unit on standby and located near the scene, but did not.
Wooten also said that while a risk-threat assessment was “discussed” by SWAT members before the warrants were served, that in the future, the risk-threat assessment would be standardized and put in writing ahead of time.
This story was originally published May 18, 2021 at 5:02 PM with the headline "How was Andrew Brown Jr. killed? Why did the SBI investigate? Answers to questions.."
