Why Can’t I Watch Body Cam Videos from the Jabari Peoples Shooting?
There are no ongoing investigations. The family is fine. So, why can’t Alabama law enforcement, the Homewood Police Department, or Jefferson County District Attorney Danny Kerr share the Dan video for everyone to see what really happened? It seems absurd.
On Wednesday afternoon, after weeks of waiting, the family of Jabari Peoples was finally allowed to view the body cam footage from an unnamed Homewood police officer. But, according to several interviews, the footage wasn’t what they expected. Instead of the unedited truth, they were shown an edited video featuring slow motion, graphics, and highlighted segments.
The incident in question involved Jabari, who allegedly had a gun in his car, resisted arrest, and was shot in the back while reaching for the weapon. I mean, maybe that’s how it happened. Perhaps it’s true that this young man, seemingly with no criminal history, made a tragic choice. Perhaps.
If only we could watch the video ourselves. But, instead, we have to rely on Kerr and the police’s accounts. There’s a sense that the family’s perspective isn’t being taken into account, nor do we trust their lawyers.
It’s worth mentioning that Kerr has a reputation for being straightforward. Many, including civil rights activists and former police officers, admire him. I believe he genuinely thinks the video supports a justified shooting, but I still want to see it firsthand.
This draws me back to Stephen Perkins’s case. He was shot by Decatur police in his own yard. Initially, the police claimed he threatened a tow truck driver with a gun. However, footage from a neighboring security camera contradicted that narrative, revealing a police ambush where they didn’t give him a chance to comply.
Weeks passed before the body cam footage was released to the Morgan County DA, and when it was, the media received a heavily edited version. It resembled the footage shown to Jabari’s family—manipulated, spliced, and enhanced with visuals that seemed misleading. It appeared to be crafted to protect the officers involved.
The edits never cast the police in a negative light. They focused on presenting Perkins as a threat, while ignoring the context of the shooting. Concerns about the officers hiding and the lack of warning were disregarded. The entire interaction was stripped of crucial elements and reduced to a few edited minutes.
The only thing highlighted in the Perkins video was a flashlight beam from his gun pointing toward the officer. Without context, that could potentially justify the shooting, but a judge later ruled that the officers had acted improperly, saying they didn’t have the right to confront civilians in their yards.
Now, in Jabari’s case, it’s possible that everything points to a young man making a poor choice. Perhaps the shooting was justified, according to Kerr and others involved. But without seeing the unedited body cam video, we can’t know for sure.
So, let’s push for transparency. We need access to the complete, raw footage. That way, we can draw our own conclusions.
