On Sunday, protesters narrowly avoided a clash with riot police in Durham, North Carolina, when they took to the streets on the two-month anniversary of the mysterious death of 17-year-old Jesus “Chuy” Huerta.
On Nov. 19, 2013, Huerta died of a gunshot wound while handcuffed in the back of a police car. The police ruled it a suicide, and last week, the Durham district attorney announced that, based on findings by the State Bureau of Investigation, no charges would be brought against the officer in the car.
That isn’t enough for Huerta’s grieving family or for community members who view Huerta’s death within the lens of Durham Police Department’s long history of police brutality, racial profiling and lack of transparency. Their outcry has been met with further aggression from the police: on the one-month anniversary of the tragedy, officers in riot gear teargassed 150 demonstrators holding a vigil in downtown Durham. But DPD's tactics did not deter demonstrators from gathering again on the two-month anniversary of Huerta's death.
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Mainstream news outlets have falsely reported that the entire group of about 120 people were involved in breaking windows and spray-painting patrol cars, though no arrests were made based on these charges. No mainstream reporters actually attended the march. If the people responsible for the broken windows and painted cars were indeed affiliated with the march, they had separated from the larger group to take the actions they did. No mainstream outlets have reported on the police provocation that took place, or the group’s concerted effort to avoid an altercation.
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"Under North Carolina law, in order to commit someone they have to be a threat to themselves and that threat has to be to commit suicide or to harm themselves,” Charns says. Therefore, reporting that the officers had no knowledge that Huerta was suicidal, “if not an outright lie, is deceitful.” For Charns, this undermines the department’s credibility with respect to other aspects of the investigation.
Protesters Ask: How Can You Shoot Yourself in the Head After Being Frisked and Handcuffed? | Alternet
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