A father of three has died after an officer-involved shooting in Pasadena, California, on Saturday.
According to KTLA, 32-year-old Anthony McClain was a passenger during the traffic stop which led to the fatal incident. Police said the driver was cooperative and was arrested at the scene but said McClain tried to escape and removed a gun from his waistband as he was running away.
“Fearing for both his and the public’s safety, the officer fired his weapon twice, striking the suspect at least once in the upper torso,” the department said in a statement, CBS Los Angeles reported.
McClain died after he was taken to the hospital. The community became outraged after seeing a video of the 32-year-old being held on the ground in handcuffs with an officer appearing to be on his back.
This is real heartbreaking for not only Pasadena & local residents of mines but to the Black Community as a whole & his name isn’t being spoke about loud enough for me. Anthony Mcclain deserved better. Fûck the system. RIP ???? pic.twitter.com/1aCoYLJFqH
— CREOLEPATRA???? (@ChanelLondynn) August 17, 2020
Devastated friends and family expressed their frustration during a vigil outside the Pasadena Police Department on Sunday.
“This guy’s got a son. He got cousins, uncles, everybody that loves him," McClain’s godmother, Colyna Winbush, said during the vigil. "Look, the community came out for Anthony.”
Winbush said the officer shot her godson in the back.
“If he’s fleeing from you, why would you shoot somebody in the back?" she said. "That’s just a coward move across the board.”
Loved ones are demanding transparency after police said they found an automatic handgun at the scene.
“This is ridiculous. Pasadena needs to care more about the community instead of coming against us because of our color,” McClain’s ex-girlfriend, Kimberly Jenkins, said.
Jenkins attended the vigil with her and McClain's son.
“He’s a grandson, he’s somebody’s child. You just don’t shoot and kill people,” Jenkins said. “Justice needs to be served."
One demonstrator and an officer suffered minor injuries when protesters clashed with police during the vigil, but no arrests were made, KTLA reported. One man held a sign saying “Abolish Pasadena police.”
Police said they will release footage from the officers’ body cameras as soon as possible.
“He’s like my son. That’s like my son laying right there. … For him to die the way he died is senseless and there’s no excuse for it,” Winbush said.
The officer-involved shooting comes during a time of heightened racial tension in the country. Widespread demonstrations, which were sparked by the death of George Floyd, are still continuing as social justice advocates demand an end to systemic racism and police brutality.
In Portland, demonstrators have gathered for 83 straight days, according to Oregon Live. When protesters came together again in southeast Portland on Tuesday, a peaceful demonstration turned into chaos. Demonstrators clashed with officers in riot gear, windows were broken and the Office of Community Involvement was set on fire, Oregon Live reported.
