What to Know
- The body camera footage showing Philadelphia officer Mark Dial shooting and killing Eddie Irizarry further refutes the initial police reports of the incident, attorneys for Irizarry's family announced Thursday.
- During the press conference, O'Brien and Johnson announced that Irizarry's family saw the body worn camera video of the shooting during a meeting with Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner on Wednesday.
- The attorneys said Krasner's office assured them they were working to release the bodycam video to the public within the next two weeks. They also said the footage further refuted the initial police reports of the shooting.
The body camera footage showing Philadelphia officer Mark Dial shooting and killing Eddie Irizarry further refutes the initial police reports of the incident, attorneys for Irizarry's family announced Thursday.
Attorneys Shaka Johnson and Kevin P. O'Brien both spoke during a Thursday morning press conference at the Concilio Office on 141 East Hunting Park Avenue. They were joined by community leaders who called for justice more than a week after officials announced the pending firing of Officer Dial, 27, who was captured on video shooting and killing Irizarry, 27.
During the press conference, O'Brien and Johnson announced that Irizarry's family saw the body worn camera video of the shooting during a meeting with Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner on Wednesday.
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"Part of me was like, 'I can't,' but then I'm like, 'No, I have to,'" Irizarry's aunt, Zoraida Garcia, said. "And I got the strength to watch it. You guys are gonna see it. It's horrible."
The attorneys said Krasner's office assured them they were working to release the bodycam video to the public within the next two weeks. They also said the footage further refuted the initial police reports of the shooting.
"The footage provides further irrefutable proof that the initial police narrative of this shooting was false," O'Brien said.
A rally for Irizarry began Thursday at 4:30 p.m. outside of Taller Puertorriqueño on 2600 North 5th Street. The rally was followed by a march through North Philadelphia that included a stop at the location where Irizarry was killed.
The press conference, rally and march occurred more than a week after Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw announced the suspension and pending firing of Officer Mark Dial.
“Today, I am announcing that I have made the decision to utilize commissioner’s direct action to suspended Police Officer Mark Dial with the intent to dismiss him at the end of 30 days due to administrative violations," Outlaw said during a press conference on Aug. 23. "More specifically, I chose to exercise direct action due to Officer Dial’s violations of PPD disciplinary code Article 4, insubordination, Section 4-002, refusal to promptly obey proper orders from a superior officer, and Article 1, conduct unbecoming, Section 1 – 008, failure to cooperate in any departmental investigation."
Outlaw also noted that Dial's actions during the deadly shooting are still under investigation and that his pending firing is due to him not giving an account of the incident within 72 hours, which is the department's policy.
"I want to make it clear that the investigation into the shooting itself continues, along with the administrative investigation in which there may be additional disciplinary charges in the event that Officer Dial violated additional PPD policies," Outlaw said.
Outlaw's announcement came a day after video was released of Officer Dial shooting and killing Irizarry.
Attorney Shaka Johnson was joined by Irizarry's family during the Aug. 22 press conference in Center City. During the presser, Johnson showed surveillance video of the deadly police shooting.
Johnson said he and Irizarry's family were able to obtain surveillance video from the community after they were initially unable to get the body worn camera video from city officials.
What we know about the shooting
The shooting occurred on Monday, August 14, in Philadelphia.
Investigators said Irizarry was driving the wrong way along the 100 block of E. Willard Street at 12:28 p.m. when he was pulled over by Officer Mark Dial, a five-year veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department, and his partner.
The surveillance video shows a car pulling up and parking on a narrow street. A few seconds later, a police vehicle pulls up next to the car and two officers get out.
When the officers approached Irizarry's vehicle, a Toyota Corolla, Officer Dial attempted to open the passenger door of the car, when his partner alerted him that Irizarry was armed, according to Outlaw.
While one of the officers is heard saying something to the other officer in the video moments before the shooting, it's unclear what exactly is being said.
The officers are also heard repeatedly saying, "show me your hands" while aiming their weapons at the vehicle. One of the officers then fires six shots at the car a few seconds later.
In their Aug. 16 press release correcting their initial report, police said Dial's partner alerted him that Irizarry had a "weapon" before Dial opened fire. On Thursday, O'Brien and Johnson said none of the officers used the word "weapon," based on the bodycam footage, however.
“We heard one officer say to the other, ‘He’s got a knife and then we heard Officer Dial say, ‘Drop the knife,'" Johnson said Thursday. "Because from a law enforcement standpoint, I want you all to be aware and clear, ‘weapon’ is much softer and kinder than ‘knife.’”
Police said Officer Dial fired "multiple times" and that Irizarry was hit "several" times. Irizarry's family said that he was shot six times, which is consistent with what's shown in the surveillance video.
Outlaw said that officials are not yet certain whether Irizarry knew he was being followed by police.
In the surveillance video, one of the officers then opens up the car door and pulls Irizarry out. Both officers then carry him as they walk away.
Irizarry was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead at 12:48 p.m. that day, officials said.
Initially, police officials said that Irizarry was outside of the vehicle while armed with a knife and had lunged at police before he was shot. Police later said on Aug. 16 that this information was not accurate however and instead he was inside the car and simply turned when he was shot and killed. The video that was shown during the Aug. 22 press conference shows the officers firing at the vehicle only a few seconds after pulling it over. At no point was Irizarry outside of the car.
O'Brien said Thursday that the bodycam video further refuted the initial report that Irizarry was outside the vehicle and lunged at officers.
“He never raises that knife towards police officers or lunges at them. In fact, it really appears that he’s trying to put the knife away as police interact with him," O'Brien said.
Investigators claimed two knives "were observed inside the vehicle." Officials said these were a serrated folding knife and some type of kitchen knife. It's unclear from the video shown on Aug. 22 whether or not there were knives inside the car.
O'Brien and Johnson said Irizarry was carrying a pocket knife that he used for work at the time of the shooting.
“When he’s told to drop the knife, he’s never given the opportunity to drop the knife and summarily shot before the police officer can really get the words out of his mouth that he’s asking for the knife to be dropped and I remind you this is a person who doesn’t speak English all that well," O'Brien said.
During the Aug. 22 press conference, Johnson criticized the initial account from police that they later said was inaccurate.
"When you look at this video, I want you to ask yourselves, look at it critically and ask yourselves, how, based on what you will soon see, could the narrative have ever been, this was a police chase? How could Ms. Reilly have ever taken to the podium as a spokesperson for the police department and said that Mr. Irizarry, Eddie, got out of that vehicle, wielded a knife, and I believe I heard Ms. Jasmine Reilly say, 'officers gave commands to drop the knife whilst Eddie was outside of the vehicle. He did not do that. He in fact lunged at police officers and then was shot.' We know that that is a patent lie. It is a fabrication. It did not happen that way at all," Johnson said.
Corporal Jasmine Reilly is a spokesperson for the Philadelphia Police Department who read the initial report of the shooting but was not the officer who created the actual report.
During the press conference on Aug. 16, Outlaw said investigators knew their initial story was not accurate after watching body camera footage from the officers on the scene.
"The body worn camera footage made it very clear that what we initially reported was not actually what happened," she said.
"I would call it misinformation," Outlaw said.
Outlaw was also asked where the initial "misinformation" came from.
"As I stated when asked that before, that is currently under an active investigation," Outlaw said. "I, again, have questions. I have the same questions."
On Thursday, Johnson said the police department's initial report wasn't a case of misinformation, but rather "conspiracy."
“This from the very beginning has been an onslaught of lies and fairy tales,” Johnson said.
O'Brien also criticized the length of time it took for Outlaw to publicly correct the initial police report.
"It took 30 hours from the shooting or from the initial remarks by the public information officer for the police to correct the false statements that Mr. Irizarry got out of the vehicle and lunged at police officers with a knife," O'Brien said. "We know now that didn’t happen.”
O'Brien also disputed Commissioner Outlaw's statement that it takes a long time to download and view bodycam footage. O'Brien claimed he was told that an investigator with the Citizens Police Oversight Commission was on the scene and reviewed the bodycam footage within two hours of the shooting.
“Why it took another 28 hours for the police to correct that false narrative? I don’t know," O'Brien said. "I think everyone here, myself, and certainly the family, are extremely distressed and disappointed in the police department’s initial false narrative."
NBC10 reached out to Philadelphia police on Thursday for a reaction to the comments made by Johnson and O'Brien. A spokesperson said they could not comment due to the ongoing investigation.
What we know about Eddie Irizarry
NBC10 Philadelphia's Miguel Martinez-Valle spoke with Irizarry's family. They said his primary language was Spanish and that he didn't understand or speak English well. They also said he had a mental health illness. Johnson also spoke about Irizarry's mental health issues during the Aug. 22 press conference.
"That young man unfortunately doesn't speak a word of English and he battled with schizophrenia for many, many years," Johnson said.
Johnson said Irizarry had moved to the United States from Puerto Rico at the age of 19 and had never been in trouble with the law.
"This young man has never been arrested a day in his life," Johnson said. "He's never seen handcuffs, the inside of a jail cell. Ever in 27 years. Never had a negative encounter with police."
Irizarry's family members said they've always praised law enforcement and wanted to be part of the police force. The death of Irizarry and the police department's handling of the investigation so far has changed their stance however.
Dial's attorney, meanwhile, told NBC10 his client has the full support of the Fraternal Order of Police.
Officer Dial's partner has also been placed on administrative duty.
Funeral services for Irizarry took place on Aug. 24 at Christ & St. Ambrose Episcopal Church in Philadelphia.
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