The shooting death of Charleena Lyles, 30, is bringing attention to the Seattle resident. According to Seattle police officers, Lyles held a knife before being shot and killed in her Seattle apartment on Sunday, June 18. However, the below Facebook video purporting to show Seattle police officers speaking with Charleena, who was pregnant with her fifth child, is getting more attention because an officer can be heard allegedly telling Lyles that she is not going to get shot.
According to the Washington Post , Charleena was shot and killed in front of her children, after Seattle police claim that Lyles confronted them with a knife. Charleena had contacted police in Seattle to report a potential burglary but ended up dead. Charleena suffered from mental health issues, and Lyles was in the third month of her pregnancy. However, the family of Lyles has asked why police couldn’t subdue the “tiny” woman using less deadly force — such as using a Taser.
The Twitter page of Steven Hsieh, a news editor for The Stranger , posted the same video, as seen below, and wrote that the footage was filmed by a neighbor of Charleena’s who did not want to be identified. The description of the video says that Seattle police were speaking with a man in the apartment.
Warning: The below videos may contain offensive language.
https://www.facebook.com/KeeganNYC/videos/vb.28601630/881109312997/?type=2&theater
As reported by The Seattle Times, Monika Williams, Charleena’s sister, asked why Seattle police felt it necessary to shoot and kill Lyles to subdue the woman.
“Why couldn’t they have Tased her? They could have taken her down. I could have taken her down.”
The Washington Post reports that Seattle police haven’t offered many details about the circumstances that led them to shoot and kill Lyles. The incident happened on Sunday before 10 a.m.
Because Seattle police were familiar with Brettler Family Place, which is the apartment complex where the shooting occurred that is designed for people leaving homelessness, the call for help triggered a “hazard information” alert that “presented an increased risk to officers.” Perhaps that’s why officers can be seen in videos like those below from the Twitter feed of Hsiesh in tactical gear. Two officers fired their weapons.
The Seattle officers haven’t been named, but witnesses noted that the white officers shot the black woman, and they will be put on administrative leave as the shooting is investigated. One has been on the force for 11 years, while the other officer is newer.
Lyles reportedly suffered from mental health issues that had gone untreated. A vigil honoring Charleena’s life drew about 100 people.
#CharleenaLyles was a sister and a friend to many. #SayHerName pic.twitter.com/tgHA1oFzM5
— Tacoma Action Collective (@tacoma_action) June 18, 2017
[Featured Image by Ted S. Warren/AP Images]
