Bullet Holes, Questions, Remain After Bed-Stuy Man Shot Dead By Police

BED STUY, NY — Ceasar Robinson's neighbors walk past the bullet holes in their hallway and wonder if the 78-year-old really had to die, one local resident told Patch.

"Most of the people in the building don't believe that he would have pulled a gun on the police," said Ray, a resident of 330 Lewis Ave. "The NYPD needs to release the body camera footage as soon as possible. It otherwise makes no sense that he would charge cops with a gun."

Ray is referring to the narrative delivered by NYPD Chief of Detectives Jeffrey Maddrey last week, hours after two police officers shot the 78-year-old dead in his own Bed-Stuy building.

According to Maddrey, the cops were responding to a potential robbery reported by his nephew when the 78-year-old "charged at officers" with a gun in his hand.

Many locals reported hearing six gunshots in the apartment building.

Ray said he heard someone say "no, no, no" before gunshots rang out, but he could not discern who was speaking.

"While it was definitely nerve wracking," Ray said, "I've been so desensitized by gun violence that it probably isn't affecting me as much as it should."

Ray, who lives above the apartment, noted police had visited Robinson's apartment nearly a dozen times in the last three to four years.

He is not the only Bed-Stuy resident anxious to see if body-cam footage will confirm the narrative provided by police.

On Monday, advocates held a rally in Bed Stuy to protest what they say was "inexcusable violence" exerted in Brooklyn. Advocates also called the police narrative into question.

"We know that the police lie all the time, so why should this be any different?" an organizer said at Monday's rally.

For a case like the Bed Stuy shooting, NYPD will release body-worn camera footage within 30 days, according to the department's website. Investigations, court orders or family viewing could slow the timeline down, police said.

Body-worn camera footage is released to NYPD's Youtube page which already includes an index of over 80 officer-involved shootings. The most recent video was uploaded two months ago with footage of a shooting in October 2022.

Neighbors say the man was well liked and lovingly called "dad."

"He was a fixture in the neighborhood," Ray said, "and had lived there for a long time."