Community Reacts To Blevins Shooting Death Footage

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- In the hours following the release of body camera footage of the Thurman Blevins shooting, community members have expressed their outrage.

Blevins, a 31-year-old black man, was shot and killed by Minneapolis police officers Justin Schmidt and Ryan Kelly on June 23 following a 911 call about a man firing a gun in a north Minneapolis neighborhood.

The Justice for Thurman Blevins Jr. Facebook page published a reaction shortly after the video was released.

The statement says in part, "Thurman Blevins begged for his life not to be taken by the Minneapolis Police Department. Justin Schmidt is in fact the instructor of the fear-based training for the Minneapolis Police Department, meaning: he was never afraid when he encountered Thurman Blevins that day on the corner in front of his girlfriend and her child. Thurman Blevins was shot while running for his life in his back."

The group has also organized a protest event slated for 4:30 p.m. on July 31 at the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis.

The statement continued, and the group said that Blevins was not treated as a human, but rather as the expletive you can hear at the beginning of the body camera video. They called for the two Minneapolis police officers who shot Blevins to be put on unpaid leave, be fired and be prosecuted.

The video released Sunday was stabilized and analyzed, according to the police department, by the National Center for Audio & Video Forensics in Beverly Hills, California.

An autopsy showed that Blevins died from multiple gunshot wounds.

Schmidt and Kelly have been on leave since the shooting, which is standard procedure following the use of deadly force.