Police lied that Anthony Thompson, 17, shot an officer in his school’s bathroom. They then retracted the lie but have released few other details. It is reported the cop either shot himself or was shot by his cohorts.
Notwithstanding that police can arrest armed white mass murderers, they seem to have no desire to arrest unarmed African-Americans. On April 12th, police were called to the Austin-East Magnet High School in Knoxville, Tennessee, where Anthony Thomson jr. is a junior.
Initial reporting is that the police were called because the mother of Thompson’s girlfriend called police after her daughter returned home from school earlier than she should after a physical confrontation between her and Thompson with whom she had a romantic relationship.
The young woman is reported to have had marks on her face.
Police arrived at the school where the Young man was locked in a bathroom.
They immediately escalated the incident and employed lethal force, killing the 17-year-old. They then reported that he was shot after he shot one of their own but later retracted that story saying that Anthony Thompson did not shoot their officer.
Neither the police department nor the Knox County District Attorney General’s office looking at the evidence, has released the bodyworn cameras.
Charme Allen, the DA, argues the video cannot be released until a full investigation into the shooting is completed.
“There are rules, abundant, as to why I cannot release this footage,” she said at a press conference. She cited privacy rights and due process of law should charges be filed in the case. “If we release this body cam footage, there’s the possibility that we could violate a law that where we could not use it in the trial if we were to go to trial.”
In the meantime, the nation is left wondering what to do about this epidemic of police violence.