It asks a state court to award damages, reimburse costs and declare that the officers' use of deadly force was unlawful and unauthorized. The family's lawsuit alleges negligence, assault and battery. 'Now that we´ve seen the further evidence that´s contained and attached to the charges, there´s no question in our minds that this was an event that could have been and should have been prevented.'Ī lawsuit filed by Sykap's grandmother and mother argues that the officers violated department policy and use-of-force standards when they shot the teen, who was unarmed and posed no risk to them. It says officers kept firing after the car lurched forward and ended up in a ditch. 'We have suspected from the beginning when we began to get information about how the events unfolded, that the shooting was entirely unjustified,' he said. He said the prosecution wasn't bringing any new evidence for the case that they didn't have when the case went before the grand jury.Įric Seitz, an attorney representing Sykap's family in a civil lawsuit against the city and as-of-yet unidentified police officers, said he was gratified prosecutors were pursuing the case. Matt Dvonch, special counsel to Honolulu prosecutor Steve Alm, said it's not unusual for prosecutors to ask a judge to find probable cause that a crime has likely been committed even after a grand jury has declined to indict a person.
The three officers were scheduled to appear in court on June 25.A stuffed bear sits at a street memorial for Sykap, whose nickname was 'Baby' because he was the youngest of eight children "This is a huge step towards accountability, which is critical for the community's trust in their policing system," she said. Jacquie Esser, a state deputy public defender who is not involved in the case, said it's critical that police be held accountable for when they use excessive force and kill unarmed people or if they commit misconduct. "Now that we've seen the further evidence that's contained and attached to the charges, there's no question in our minds that this was an event that could have been and should have been prevented." "We have suspected from the beginning when we began to get information about how the events unfolded, that the shooting was entirely unjustified," he said. The video shows one officer directly behind the Honda when he fires 10 consecutive shots at the back of the driver's seat. However, KGMB-TV obtained the footage last month. Police have refused to release officer body camera footage from the shooting. Mark Sykap suffered gunshot wounds in his right shoulder and right hand. He said Ah Nee fired multiple times at Mark Sykap, Iremamber's brother who was also in the car. Thom's patrol car sustained "a few minor paint chips and some black scuffmarks," Van Marter said.
Van Marter said that while Thom claimed the Honda rammed into his patrol car, body camera footage didn't show that.
Sykap was pronounced dead after arriving at the hospital.įredeluces fired one shot but did not hit Sykap, he said. Police have said Sykap was driving a stolen Honda linked to an armed robbery, burglary, purse snatching and car theft and led officers on a chase before the shooting.ĭeputy Prosecutor Christopher Van Marter said in court documents that Thom fired 10 rounds into the rear window of the Honda "without provocation." Eight of the shots hit Sykap, injuring him in the back of the head, back of the neck, upper back and left arm. Malcom Lutu, the president of the state police officers' union, said in a statement: "We continue to trust the process and will continue to stand by our officers."
0 kommentar(er)
