A protest was held outside the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office more than two months after a man was shot and killed by police inside a corner store.
The rally, organized by the Party for Socialism and Liberation as well as friends and family of 28-year-old Alexander Spencer, took place around 11:30 a.m. on Thursday outside District Attorney Larry Krasner’s office in Center City.
On Jan. 26, 2024, Spencer – known by his loved ones as “Spence” – was shot and killed during a caught-on-camera altercation with police officers inside a store along the 2800 block of North Mascher Street. Protesters on Thursday demanded an update on the investigation.
“The community has been told that we have to wait 90 days for any progress on this case,” said Xiomara Torres, an organizer with the Party for Socialism and Liberation. “No matter the results of this 90-day investigation, we know that Spence’s death, like so many others, was completely avoidable. If officers had not been conducting stop-and-frisks and harassing patrons of that corner store, Spence would be alive today.”
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NBC10 reached out to the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office for comment on the protest.
"We support their right to voice their concerns," a spokesperson wrote. "The investigation into the fatal shooting of Alexander Spencer is ongoing. We have no further comment at this time."
Video of the shooting
The shooting occurred on Jan. 26 around 8:45 p.m. at a grocery store along the 2800 block of North Mascher Street.
Deputy Commissioner Frank Vanore said two 24th District officers were on a routine patrol inside an unmarked Ford Taurus. The officers parked outside the store and one of the officers walked inside for a security check, according to Vanore.
"He was armed with the information that there was an individual from that area wanted for a non-fatal shooting warrant," Vanore said. "That shooting had happened a few weeks prior to this night. He knew who that individual was and he knew he hung in the area of that store. So he was out looking for that individual to see if he could contact him."
Surveillance video released by police shows Spencer, an unidentified man in a black hooded sweatshirt, and a third man in a red hooded sweatshirt -- later identified by investigators as 42-year-old Jose Quinones-Mendez -- hanging out in the back of the store.
A fourth man in a light-colored sweatshirt enters the store and says in Spanish, "They're coming," just before the first officer enters the store.
Vanore said that fourth man's words "immediately heightened the officer's suspicion that something was going on in that store."
Video shows the officer then speaking with the man in the light-colored sweatshirt though it's unclear from the video what's being said. The officer then approaches and speaks with Spencer, Quinones-Mendez, and the man in the black sweatshirt. The officer's partner then walks into the store.
Another angle from the surveillance video shows the officers speaking with Spencer though it is once again unclear what is being said. Vanore said one of the officers spotted what he believed to be a gun in Spencer's pocket. The video shows the officers searching Spencer. A struggle between the three men then ensues and the officers wrestle Spencer to the floor.
Spencer is heard shouting, "I can't breathe" as the struggle continues.
A gunshot is then heard. Police said it was at that moment when one of the officers was shot in the leg causing his blood to flow on the floor.
“We now know that he had a double perforating wound," Vanore said. “So he was down in a crouch during the struggle, his leg was bent, and the bullet goes in his thigh, out his thigh, in the back of his calf and out the front of his leg. So, one bullet went through four times.”
Police said the video appeared to show that both officers had their weapons holstered when the first shot was fired.
Police said the wounded officer then pulled out his gun and tried to shoot Spencer but was unable to do so. His partner -- later identified as 33-year-old Raheem Hall -- then pulled out his gun and opened fire, shooting and killing Spencer.
The video shows the wounded officer yelling "I'm shot! I'm shot!" Officer Hall, meanwhile, yells in his radio, "Shots fired!"
Vanore said the wounded officer never fired a shot and Officer Hall only fired one shot, which struck and killed Spencer.
Another angle from the video shows a gun sliding across the floor inside the store after the shooting. Quinones-Mendez and the man in the light-colored sweatshirt are seen filming the officers and Spencer with their phones. Quinones-Mendez then grabs the gun on the floor and leaves the scene. Police said the gun he took belonged to Spencer.
Quinones-Mendez was later arrested on Wednesday, Jan. 31 and charged with theft-unlawful taking, theft-receiving stolen property, violation of the uniform firearms act - no license, violation of the uniform firearms act -on streets, obstructing justice and tampering with evidence.
The officer who was shot in the leg was taken to the hospital and later released.
Spencer's family disputes police report
Friends and family members of Spencer disputed the initial police report of the shooting. One of Spencer's relatives -- who did not want to be identified -- told NBC10 Spencer was playing with a gambling machine at the store prior to the shooting. He believes one of the officers involved did or said something to provoke Spencer.
"He takes care of his kids. He's never just out getting in trouble. He do what he gotta do for his family," the relative said. "It's as simple as that and it's not right what he did."
During the press conference on Jan. 30, Krasner and Vanore said they spoke with Spencer's family who asked that the surveillance video be released.
After seeing the video, Spencer's family members want to know why police targeted him that night, even though it appears he did nothing wrong until police approached him.
"For me, my grief has manifested in anger because when they came to me on Friday, they told me your son shot a cop and in turn the cop shot him," Spencer's mother, Yvette Spencer, told NBC10.
She said she was willing to accept what police had told her until she saw the video.
"But when I see the video, that’s not what they told me. When I saw the video, I saw them attack my son and then kill my son," she said.
Another video of the shooting on social media
Before police revealed the surveillance video of the shooting, they were investigating another video of the incident that surfaced on social media.
In the video, two officers lean over Spencer and gunshots are heard though it's unclear who fired at who. After the second gunshot, an officer calls for backup and places his knee on Spencer's head.
Police have not released any bodycam footage of the shooting. During the Jan. 30 press conference, Commissioner Bethel said the body worn camera was not initially activated by the officers and that it was knocked off their clothing during the struggle.
The Philadelphia Police Department's officer-involved shooting unit is leading the investigation. Internal affairs and the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office are also investigating.
Both officers were placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of the investigation. Police said they spoke with the wounded officer but have not yet spoken with Officer Hall pending the outcome of the district attorney's investigation which Krasner says could take up to 90 days to complete.
Officer Hall is a 6-year veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department.
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