Antwon Rose II was an African-American 17-year old shot on June 19, 2018, by police in East Pittsburgh following a traffic stop. Police stopped the vehicle because they believed it had been recently involved in a drive-by shooting. Rose was shot three times as he fled including once in the face, once in his arm, and once in the back. Rose was unarmed when shot, and later died at a hospital. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette published video footage which showed that Rose was a passenger in the car during the drive-by shooting, but that Rose was not the shooter. The drive-by shooting occurred 13 minutes before Rose's death and left one person wounded.
Protests against Rose's killing occurred in boroughs near East Pittsburgh and in Pittsburgh after his death. The officer who shot him was later charged with criminal homicide. Two guns were found in the vehicle and an empty magazine was found on Rose, but investigators believe he had not fired a weapon in the earlier drive-by shooting. One of the occupants of vehicle was charged with multiple offenses relating to the drive-by shooting including criminal homicide.
Video Shooting of Antwon Rose Jr.
Background
Antwon Rose II was 17 years old when he died. He had worked as a community volunteer and was an honor roll student at Woodland Hills High School, where he took Advanced Placement classes. His mother had been a clerk for another police department.
The police officer who shot Rose, Michael Rosfeld, had been sworn in only a few hours earlier. Rosfeld had worked in East Pittsburgh for three weeks prior to that; additionally, he had seven years experience with other police departments, including those in the Pennsylvania towns of Oakmont and Harmar, and the University of Pittsburgh. Rosfeld is now facing other charges, based on a false police report from 2017 when he was an officer for the University of Pittsburgh.
Maps Shooting of Antwon Rose Jr.
Shooting
On Tuesday, June 19, 2018 there was a drive-by shooting in North Braddock around 8:20 p.m. Police later said that witnesses described a car similar to the silver Chevrolet Cruze that Rose and two others were seen in nearby. Police stopped the car, which investigators said had clearly been hit by bullets, at 8:40 p.m. A video recording taken by a bystander shows police ordering the driver to step out from the car. While the driver was being handcuffed, Rose and the third occupant began to run. Rosfeld fired at them; Rose was struck three times and died at the hospital.
In the video a woman's voice is heard saying, "Why they shooting at him? All they did was run and they shooting at them." The third passenger escaped, but was later arrested.
Police said that Rose had been unarmed when he was shot. They also said that the car's driver was released from custody later that evening, as they did not feel they had cause to charge him. Police stated that the car may have been used as a "jitney," or low-cost private vehicle to pick up passengers. Police initially stated that they did not know if Rose had been in the car when the drive-by shooting occurred 20 minutes prior.
Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala stated that Rose had an empty 9-millimeter handgun magazine in his pocket, and officials stated there were two guns in the car, one being a 9-mm-caliber handgun and the other a .40-caliber handgun.
Indictments
Rosfeld was placed on leave and the Allegheny County Police Department began an investigation. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office later classified Rose's death as a homicide and said that Rose died of a gunshot wound to the torso.
On June 26, Rosfeld, 30, was arrested and charged with criminal homicide, after detectives stated that there were inconsistencies in the officer's testimony. Rosfeld was released on bail by the district judges overseeing the case and according to authorities appeared remorseful during interviews.
The third passenger of the vehicle, who fled from police, was arrested on June 26 and detained at the Shuman Juvenile Detention Center. Police stated that the occupant had been on juvenile probation and had cut his ankle bracelet. According to police it was the occupant who had fired the .40-caliber Glock found by police in the drive-by shooting they investigated prior to Rose's death. The occupant was charged with aggravated assault and criminal homicide among other charges.
Investigators stated that Antwon Rose had not fired a weapon in the drive-by shooting.
Reactions
The Washington Post reported that Rose was the first person killed by the East Pittsburgh Police Department since at least 2015. Also reported was that in the United States in the same period, 23 percent of those killed by police officers and 36 percent of all unarmed persons killed, had been black. On June 25, Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto told reporters "there should be a trial" before a jury regarding the death of the young man and the fate of the police officer. On July 30, 2018 it was calculated that the Pittsburgh Police force paid out over $1 million in overtime for forces who monitored protests.
Protests
June
Protests attended by hundreds of people were held on June 20 and 21 in front of the Allegheny County Courthouse in downtown Pittsburgh. On the night of June 22, protestors marching on the Parkway East freeway slowed traffic for miles; subsequent protests took place near PNC Park on Pittsburgh's North Shore and in Pittsburgh's South Side neighborhood. A visiting for Rose was held on June 24, and his funeral held at the Woodland Hills Middle School on June 25.
July
The preliminary hearing for the officer was relocated to the Allegheny County Courthouse due to security concerns given the continued protests in the city. On July 8, while protesting on Route 30 in North Versailles, four protestors were hit by a car that drove through the march. One person was arrested and one person was taken to the hospital. The protests continue and the goal of the protestors is to bring visibility and awareness to the shooting. On July 26, 2018, Pittsburgh city officials issued new protest policy due to continued disruption of the city's roadways and bridges. This policy does not prohibit protests, but does prohibit unpermitted protestors from blocking traffic or shutting down specific "red zone" areas, and during limited high-traffic times in "yellow zone" areas. On July 27 protestors at Grant Street and Forbes Avenue confronted the Public Safety Director and Police Chief. One of the protestors, Nicky Jo Dawson, complained that the new policy, "put further restrictions on people who are peacefully protesting against an oppressive system."
Annual community birthday celebration
On July 12, 2018 the Rankin community in which Antwon Rose II was raised came together for the first annual celebration of his birthday. Antwon would have been 18 years old on July 12, 2018. The celebration was motivated by his mother as a way to bring together the community and remember him. The event offered food and entertainment for participants and the organizers put together 250 backpacks of books and distributed among young African American members of the community.
See also
- List of killings by law enforcement officers in the United States, June 2018
References
Source of article : Wikipedia
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