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Tyler Vazquez
| USA TODAY
Video: Dash cam shows moments leading up to filming involving deputy
Dash cam shows moments leading up to the shoot involving an assistant
MELBOURNE, Fla – New evidence related to the fatal shooting of two teenagers by a Florida sheriff’s deputy has raised questions about the original justification for the shooting by police.
The deaths of Angelo Crooms, 16, and Sincere Pierce, 18, in a Cocoa neighborhood on November 13, sparked national interest and sparked protests. Family and community members said police provided very little information about what happened in the days following the shooting, and many questioned whether the use of lethal force was justified.
Civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, who represents the families of the two teenagers, came to Brevard County on Saturday with his co-counsel Natalie Jackson, saying they would seek justice.
Brevard County Sheriff’s Deputies Jafet Santiago-Miranda and Carson Hendren have been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of a Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigation whose findings are expected to be presented to the state attorney’s office within the next 60-90 days.
Here’s what we know about the case:
When can cops shoot at a moving vehicle? It depends
What happened during the shooting?
Crooms and Pierce, both from Cocoa, died Friday after being shot by Santiago-Miranda. Sheriff Brevard Wayne Ivey said they loaded the deputy into their car. Santiago-Miranda and Hendren were trying to stop the vehicle, which Ivey said matched a possibly stolen car that leaked a traffic stop in the area.
Jackson, an attorney for Pierce’s aunt, and family members said a family friend loaned the boys the car. At a rally on Saturday, lawyers for the families criticized MPs for failing to check the car’s license plate before attempting to stop it with guns.
Ivey said in a press release that two guns were found in the car. It is not known who had the weapons or if they were used to threaten MPs.
Video: Neighborhood watch video shows Sincere Pierce moments before filming
Sincere Pierce is seen getting into the backseat of the car driven by Angelo Crooms minutes before the two were fatally shot by a Brevard County MP.
Dash Cam video bring an argument
Four days after the shooting, Ivey posted dashcam footage of the Santiago-Miranda police vehicle in a Facebook post.
Ivey pointed out that the deputy repeated the commands to stop the car seven times when Crooms, the driver, “accelerates the vehicle in the direction of MP Santiago-Miranda who was then forced to fire his service weapon in an attempt to ‘prevent the deadly threat of the car from crashing into him. “
“You can actually see the vehicle’s tires spin sharply as the car accelerates towards MP Santiago-Miranda who is now in immediate danger of being struck by the vehicle,” Ivey wrote.
Santiago-Miranda fired his service weapon at least nine times.
The families say the video shows Crooms trying to avoid the MP.
Crump appears in Florida after hundreds of protests at a peaceful rally
Hours after Crooms were buried in a cemetery in the Cocoa area, family and friends of the two teenagers released handfuls of white balloons into the air in a park on Saturday.
Crump led the crowd in a “Black Lives Matter” chant, saying that the lives of the two teens mattered.
“I want us to keep saying that until Sheriff (Wayne) Ivey hears us every day to the point where they can’t ignore that black lives are being taken needlessly by these people who are supposed to be trained to preserve life, not to take life, ”Crump said.
Crump and Jackson focused on how the vehicle had not been reported stolen and Crooms had obtained permission from the vehicle owner to use it.
At least 200 people marched to one of the county’s busiest intersections on Wednesday to protest the fatal shooting.
Protesters at the peaceful and loosely organized rally – mostly young people, mostly blacks – called for justice for the deaths of Croom and Pierce and for greater transparency and accountability from the sheriff’s office.
Deputy involved had a history of problems
Documents recently released by the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office shed light on Santiago-Miranda’s behavior in the months leading up to the deadly shooting.
The incidents include a reported physical confrontation and suspected threats against a Titusville police officer.
The documents show Santiago-Miranda had a history of minor violations of agency policy, including being cited twice for improper procedure in attempting to stop fleeing vehicles.
Prosecutors did not file a complaint: MP involved in fatal teenage shooting has a history of violence
Incident under investigation
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the shooting.
According to former Oviedo Police Chief Chuck Drago, investigators will need to examine every shot fired in the incident. Each use of force will have to be justified under Florida law, and each bullet counts as a separate use of force.
“In the video … you can see bullet holes on the side of the car. You know, that gives you a lot of reason to ask yourself a lot of questions. If an officer’s life is in danger, is- this still in danger once the car has passed him? ” asked Drago, who regularly works as an expert witness in court cases.
Drago said he was surprised to see Sheriff Ivey declare the shooting justified on social media days after it took place and well before the end of the FDLE investigation.
Contributing: Eric Rogers, JD Gallop, Florida today
Follow N’dea Yancey-Bragg on Twitter: @NdeaYanceyBragg
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