The Utah shooting that critically injured a 17-year-old Somali refugee Abdi Mohamed prompted public rallies in the Salt Lake City on Monday night. Civil Rights Groups and other demonstrators gathered in the streets to call for the release of body camera video that would reveal what really took place on Saturday Utah shooting. Police dismissed requests to release the video until they finished the investigation.
As per the Washington Times, the Utah shooting triggered a national debate on the police use of force particularly with the minority groups. The authorities wanted to end their investigation on the case first as it would be fairer for the victim and to the officers involved. There is no definite date yet on when the Utah Police is going to release the video. The National Conference of State Legislatures claimed that 23 states made laws on the use of body cameras and many have passed since last year.
Some protesters on Monday held slogans saying "Don't shoot." "They need retraining," Kaylee Peterson said, one of the rallyists who joined the Monday protest over the Utah shooting. "Whatever happened to Tasers? Whatever to rubber bullets? Whatever happened to shooting shots in the sky as a warning?"
On Saturday, Mohamed was shot twice in the torso when police officers attempted to stop him and another person from thrashing a man with metal sticks, according to San Diego Union Tribune. According to reports, the officers tried to persuade them to put down the metal sticks. However, Mohamed allegedly moved to the victim in a hostile manner. The officers then shot him twice. He is still in the hospital and is in a critical condition. The question now lies whether Mohamed would face criminal charges or he would sue the Utah Police Department.
The authorities have remained silent on the Utah shooting incident. It is a big puzzle why Mohamed was in that part of Salt Lake City where the place is known for overdoses, drug dealing and beatings, ABC News reported. Police regularly patrols in the area. A cousin of Mohamed told the Deseret News that he was a good child until he mingled with a bad group. Mohamed was reportedly involved in a couple of juvenile offenses since 2010 including trespassing, aggravated assault with a weapon and theft.
Several opinions about the video release of the Utah shooting could be heard. Civil Rights Groups claimed that if the police would release the video, it would silent the protesters due to transparency. However, Republican Gov. Gary Herbert said that he favors keeping the video for the moment until the investigation is done.
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