Several hours after a Black man was shot and killed in a Wiscis style Christmas parade, a police union official gave a very public account of what happened.
Armando Perez, the executive secretary of the Waukesha County Police union, told Fox6 Milwaukee of a confrontation between the man’s family members and police over the suspect’s mental health status in which a woman was physically assaulted. Police officers responded and the suspect, Sylville Smith, got into a car, threatening officers.
When a police officer was shot in the vehicle, other officers opened fire, killing the suspect.
Perez told Fox6 his opinion that the suspect was unarmed:
Waukesha Police Association’s Armando Perez shares his account of the conflict between Sylville Smith & police officers, and with the family of Sylville Smith. pic.twitter.com/fmyYxdMnLH — FOX6 News (@myfox6) June 29, 2017
Perez and others are understandably very upset at the shooting and angry at the outrage they’ve witnessed in their home town of Waukesha. They told Fox6 that they’ve got yet another story to tell and that they’re worried about their safety now that these troubling circumstances are being publicized.
Smith’s relatives also attended the rally on Thursday night.
Those people murdered their son as they were celebrating Christmas. They’re pissed! https://t.co/jJUO6GWPR4 — ‘Hayasam OK’ (@HayasamOA) June 29, 2017
I’m not excusing violence but being proud of your roots and heritage doesnt make this ok. The hate so intense right now in Waukesha was caused by hate https://t.co/GXOvhfkFpa — Paul Harvey (@PaulHarveyTV) June 29, 2017
Well of course some Waukesha residents rioted like that because the police department killed a black man! #notinmybackyard — Jodie E Huffman (@Huffm5) June 29, 2017
Smith’s death has attracted international attention and prompted outrage at a time when police are already under a microscope because of high-profile examples of their mistreatment of black men. The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office is investigating and video footage from security cameras mounted in trees next to the parade ground has been released by police and city officials. It shows a “rambling statement” about self-defense, according to local media.
Fired police chief of #Waukesha says his officers had no other choice to use deadly force & killed Sylville Smith because he refused multiple commands to drop his gun pic.twitter.com/iZL9ek2rdD — Alyssa Liebman (@alyssaLiebman) June 29, 2017
Another member of the Waukesha Police Association is promising to provide information to a statewide task force to determine whether the officers involved in the shooting violated policy or violated state law. The Department of Justice is also conducting a civil rights investigation. The Fraternal Order of Police intends to host a fund-raiser for the police officers involved.