Body-Cam Footage of Fatal Police Shooting of Unarmed Black Teen Raises Urgent Questions

Attorneys Ben Crump and Romanucci & Blandin have just released body-camera footage of the shooting death of an unarmed Black teenager. But the video, which reveals one officer announcing he is deploying a Taser at the same time another points his gun at 19-year-old Saveion McConnell and fires his weapon nine times, is at the center of growing calls for justice and accountability.

The newly released portions of the footage document McConnell’s fatal May encounter with Missouri law enforcement. Immediately, the officers’ contrasting responses became the center of renewed questions about the shooting. According to police reports, officers were investigating a shooting that injured a 17-year-old girl when they got word that one suspect was fleeing on foot. When officers caught up to McConnell and another teen, chaos ensued.

The footage shows McConnell running from officers attempting to detain him. According to Crump’s legal team, a patrol vehicle struck the teen before the confrontation ended with gunfire. In the video, McConnell is near the roadside as Lafayette County Sheriff’s Deputy Kenneth Lewie orders him to the ground with his weapon drawn.

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Nearby, Odessa Police Officer Nathan Holmberg has a Taser. Then comes the warning: “Taser! Taser! Taser!” Moments later, Lewie opens fire.

Crump’s legal team says the deputy fired nine shots, including five after McConnell had fallen. An autopsy found that McConnell was struck eight times. The footage raises urgent questions about the use of deadly force against a teenager whose family says should still be alive.

But the shooting is not the only disturbing moment captured on camera. During the search for McConnell, Holmberg is reportedly heard saying, “Trying to find a Black kid at night, that’s always fun.”

For Crump, the remarks and the shooting demand scrutiny beyond the split-second decisions officers made on the roadside. “That comment is reprehensible,” Crump said in a statement. “No parent should ever have to hear a police officer talk about the search for their child as if it were sport. Saveion was 19 years old, with his whole life ahead of him.”

The release of the footage challenges the public to examine not only how McConnell died, but also the attitudes and actions surrounding his encounter with police. Crump, who has represented countless families seeking justice for police-involved fatalities, noted that, like the McConnell family, many Black people know this story all too well.

McConnell’s family rejected the conclusion that the shooting was justified. His uncle, Phillip Washington, told KSHB 41 that the footage made the decision not to prosecute difficult to accept.

“There’s no way you could look at that video and deem that some form of justice,” Washington said. “You couldn’t. You can’t look at that video and say he was a threat.”

Washington also pointed to the officers’ different weapons as a central question: “There were two officers there, one with the taser and one with a gun.”

Johnson County Prosecuting Attorney Robert Russell said the evidence did not establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Lewie had failed to act in self-defense. Crump’s team disputes that conclusion and is pursuing accountability through civil litigation.

For McConnell’s loved ones, the footage is evidence they believe demands a different answer from the one authorities have given. His mother, Michelle Washington, remembered her son as a promising student-athlete with a life ahead of him.

“I am heartbroken… Out of my four children, he was my only son. Our family is devastated, and his sisters are having a very difficult time accepting his passing,” Washington said in a statement. “He was loved by hundreds and always will be and is deeply missed throughout our community and family.”