Andrew Brown Shooting: NC Governor Calls For A Special Prosecutor

NORTH CAROLINA — A special prosecutor should be appointed in the case of a Black man shot and killed last week in Elizabeth City while trying to drive away from officers, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said Tuesday afternoon.

Cooper's comments come the same day the FBI Charlotte field office announced it was launching a federal civil rights investigation into the death of Andrew Brown, Jr.

"In the interest of justice and confidence in the judicial system, I believe a special prosecutor should handle all matters regarding the shooting in Pasquotank County," Cooper said. "This would help assure the community and Mr. Brown's family that a decision on pursuing criminal charges is conducted without bias," he said.

Cooper said his position was consistent with the recommended law change put forth by the Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice, which calls for a special prosecutor appointment in police shootings, adding "I believe the law should be changed to help ensure it."

Andrew Brown Jr., 42, was shot and killed by Pasquotank County Sheriff's Office deputies in Elizabeth City April 21 as they attempted to serve an arrest and search warrant that alleged that Brown sold small amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine to an informant. The police informant claimed to authorities to have purchased drugs from Brown for more than a year.

SEE ALSO: FBI Launches Civil Rights Probe Into Andrew Brown's Death

Tuesday, the FBI said it was launching a probe into possible civil rights violations.

"Agents will work closely with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina and the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice to determine whether federal laws were violated," FBI Charlotte said Tuesday. "As this is an ongoing investigation, we cannot comment further."

An attorney for Brown's family said he had both his hands on the steering wheel of the car he was in at the time of the shooting and was backing away from deputies, citing a 20-second body camera video of the incident she said indicated he posed no threat.

Tuesday, autopsy results revealed by Brown's family indicated he was shot five times — four non-lethal gunshot wounds on his right arm and a fatal shot in the back of the head.

SEE ALSO: Autopsy Shows Andrew Brown Shot 5 Times, Including Back Of Head

The FBI investigates hundreds of civil rights cases each year and is the lead agency in investigating "color of law" cases where individuals are acting under authority bestowed by a local agency. Excessive force — which Brown's family alleges in the fatal shooting — is one such "color of law" violation. "The breadth and scope of the use of force is vast—from just the physical presence of the officer to the use of deadly force," according to the FBI. "Violations of federal law occur when it can be shown that the force used was willfully 'unreasonable' or 'excessive.'"

This marks the third such FBI civil rights case involving Black people killed as the result of police interaction. Investigations into the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minn., and of Breonna Taylor in Louisville, KY, are ongoing.

More information about FBI civil rights investigations may be found here.
The autopsy results, released by Brown's family, comes one day after they expressed outrage after authorities provided only a heavily redacted 20-second clip of the incident.

SEE ALSO: Andrew Brown Shooting: Family Only Shown 'Snippet' Of Video

Reading the autopsy results before a gathered crowd Tuesday morning, Brown family attorney Ben Crump said Brown had four bullet wounds in his right arm and "a kill shot to the back of the head."

"They won't release the video, so we have to painstakingly put the pieces together," Crump said.