BREVARAD COUNTY, Fla. — Civil rights attorney Ben Crump held a news conference in Brevard County on Friday to announce a lawsuit over the deputy-involved shooting that left a 16-year-old and 18-year-old dead.
Crump is representing the families of 16-year-old Angelo Crooms and 18-year-old Sincere Pierce who were shot by Brevard County deputy Jafet Santiago-Miranda last November.
That same day deputies were looking for a similar car that was listed as stolen and fled the scene during an attempted traffic stop.
“My son’s life mattered,” Crooms’ mother Tasha said during the news conference. “… He was a 16 year old who made have made a mistake but still had time to correct it.”
Crump has previously represented the families of George Floyd and Trayvon Martin.
The state attorney’s report states that “evidence and testimony provided by the FDLE and BCSO investigations, held insufficient evidence for the State to prove at trial that Deputy Santiago was not acting in self-defense, a legal justification for the use of deadly force.”
Crump’s lawsuit counters that narrative stating that Pierce and Crooms were shot “without justification” and that pair were “unjustifiably murdered by the very sovereign authority that took an oath to protect them.”
The lawsuit is requesting that the Department of Justice investigate the Brevard County Sheriff’s policies, stating that the department’s use-of-force policies “fall short” of national and comparable governmental agencies.
A spokesperson for the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office said that the agency will not comment on pending litigation...
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.
Demonstrators march through Cocoa after deputy fatally shot boy, 16, man, 18 Demonstrators marched through Cocoa less than a week after an 18-year-old and 16-year-old were shot and by a Brevard County deputy.