Bodycam footage challenges police narrative in killing of 17-year-old Emeshyon Wilkins

A black teenager, shot in the back of the head by police while fleeing is a headline too often broadcast through media and news feeds. Yet, sadly, the investigation is ongoing in the case of 17-year-old Emeshyon Wilkins in 2024.

The investigation is still ongoing. The footage conflicts with earlier accounts by the police who claimed the teen had pointed a gun at them. Although investigators found a firearm on Wilkins, it had been disassembled and unable to fire.

The Wilkins family requested for lawyer Al Watkins to seek to obtain the footage in question. This particular video could be the key to providing justice in an already questionable time. In it, there is also audio of an armed policeman shouting commands for Wilkins to drop a phantom gun…the footage shows no such weapon pointed in the direction of the officers.

This is where things get interesting. Did the cops lie from the outset or did they make a fatal error that cost this minor his life?

What are the ramifications for displaying footage that could alter the course of the lives of the police officers. There’s no way that these kinds of incidents should be happening anywhere in the world, especially not in America.

What this shows is the lack of due diligence on the part of various public records agencies. Watkins tried to go that route but he had to flex legal muscle to get the footage. It’s too commonplace for these acts to happen. Just imagine the era before body cams. How many incidents occurred where cops just fudged numbers and scrawled nonsense on police reports.

It is too important and good for a proper society to have a police force. It is just as crucial that that force be well-trained and professional at all times, even off the clock. It remains to be seen whether the police will end this kind of activity.

While it has happened many times, it doesn’t mean there’s an epidemic of black teens being shot at all times. The statistics tell the quiet tale while headlines scream the horrific details. And records show that footage is being made available to the legal teams at least.

Statements matching what actually took place will be scrutinized significantly. There will be no eliminating number or bearing false witness. There will be a reckoning because this type of activity must be extinguished where cops shoot kids in the back of the head.

The idea of trust between cop and citizen is often strained, mostly nonexistent. That is until someone has a problem with their spouse or a neighbor and they have to call the cops. The job of a policeman is stressful enough. What these body cams do is provide real life evidence of what took place during a police stop on the highway or side street.

At the moment, prosecutors are looking for every scrap of evidence to see if criminals can be brought up on the offending officer.

It’s one of the saddest cases in America to have youth struck down by the police. The irony remains, the very people they’re supposed to protect get a bullet to the brain.

Wilkins might have been running away but can you blame him? He’s got an inoperable pistol on his person and he’s already in trouble for fitting the description of a car thief.

The officers want to see justice as well. They will argue they pursued Wilkins based on his appearance and the mysterious gun in hand. Footage of the incident tells the tale best by showing and airing audio. Now, all it takes is for the wheels of righteousness to start spinning.