'There was a lot of chaos': Family of Walter Wallace Jr., lawyers review bodycam footage from fatal Philadelphia shooting

PHILADELPHIA — A lawyer representing the family of Walter Wallace Jr., a Black man fatally shot by police this week, reviewed body camera footage from the two officers involved in the shooting and described a scene of "chaos."

Shaka Johnson and his partner, Kevin P. O'Brien, spent Thursday morning with the Wallace family and city officials reviewing the footage from the officers – who have yet to be named – involved in the Monday afternoon shooting of Wallace, who was walking toward them with a knife when they fired 14 shots.

The family is not calling for the officers to be charged with a crime, Johnson said during a press conference Thursday. That, he added, is in the hands of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner.

But, Johnson said he "absolutely" expected a wrongful death suit to be filed against the city and the police department for Wallace's death.

Johnson said reviewing the footage did not change his opinion of what happened to Wallace, 27.

"I saw a person in obvious mental health crisis," Johnson said. "My auditory senses heard people shouting, ‘He’s mental. He’s mental.’

Police have shot people experiencing a mental health crisis. Who should you call instead?

"When someone is telling you that a person is experiencing a crisis, you can’t just immediately go to your sidearm."

Johnson said the video, which isn't public yet, shows the officers on the scene for around a minute before shots ring out. Officers, he said, were about "a car length and a half" away from Wallace when they fired their weapons. Johnson said he heard one of the officers say "shoot him" a few seconds before the shooting. He said he rewound the tape a few times to listen back.

Wallace does not say anything during the confrontation, Johnson said. He appeared to be in "a cloud or stupor" as officers were commanding him to drop the knife and family members screamed.

"He was behaving like a person who didn’t appreciate the gravity of the circumstances," Johnson said.

"There was a lot of chaos."

Johnson, a former police officer, said he wants the investigation into the incident to be about change. He wants all city police officers to be armed with "less-than-lethal methods" and get better crisis management training.

A little more than half of the city's 4,500 patrol officers carry a Taser, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

"The city has failed not only the Wallace family, not only the other members of that community who will be scarred and traumatized for the remainder of their days, but the city has also failed those police officers," Johnson said. "It failed them tremendously. The only remedy the police had in that moment was their service weapon. There was no less-lethal option available."

Walter Wallace Jr. had a mental illness, his family says. Why did police respond?

"What, other than death, did you intend when you shoot a man, each officer, seven times apiece?"

Johnson did not provide an answer when asked how many times officers had responded to the Wallace residence in the days prior to and on Monday. Wallace's mother, Kathy Brant, suffers from health issues and a call was made at one point for her assistance, Johnson said.

"I wouldn’t wish this on no one else’s family what we’re going through, traumatized," said Walter Wallace Sr., the victim's father.

Unrest in the city's streets followed Wallace's death Monday and Tuesday nights, causing the city to institute a 9 p.m. curfew Wednesday night. It was lifted Thursday. The National Guard was expected in town by the end of the week and State Police officers were on the ground Wednesday night.

It is unclear when the city plans to release the body camera footage and name the officers involved in the incident.

Wallace's death is the latest in a series of recent high-profile police-involved killings across the country. Asked whether the results of some of those other investigations make him less optimistic about this investigation bringing about any change, Johnson pointed to Krasner and the recent progressive movement in the city.

"We’re not in Kentucky, thank God," Johnson said, referencing a recent grand jury decision regarding the high-profile Breonna Taylor case, in which none of the officers involved were charged with causing her death.

Follow Jeff Neiburg on Twitter @Jeff_Neiburg.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Walter Wallace Jr. shooting: Bodycam video shows 'chaos,' lawyer says