VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Virginia Delegates Jay Jones, Paul Krizek and Jeff Bourne are calling on Attorney General Mark Herring to conduct an independent investigation into the Virginia Beach police shooting death of Donovon Lynch on March 26.
Lynch, 25, was shot and killed by a police officer during a chaotic night at the Oceanfront when multiple shootings took place within blocks of each other.
During that fatal encounter, the officer's body camera was deactivated for unknown reasons, Police Chief Paul Neudigate said. Virginia State Police are now investigating why the officer's camera wasn't recording.
Herring did call for an independent investigation by VSP, but legislators believe that is not enough and want him to lead an investigation using the new "civil rights" division.
“An investigation by the Virginia State Police is not enough,” Del. Jeff Bourne said in a news release.
“We need an Attorney General who will lead using the full weight of the Attorney General Office to get the answers that Donovon’s family and the Virginia Beach community deserve.”
The legislators said transparency is important in getting answers and also holding police accountable to prevent "tragedies like this from happening in the future."
The Attorney General's Office released a statement citing Herring's support for an independent investigation, but lawmakers haven't granted the power to the state attorney general to launch his own investigations into cases like these:
"Attorney General Herring called for an independent investigation into the death of Donovon Lynch because he appreciates and shares these legislators’ concerns about the urgent need for a thorough, objective, independent investigation that goes wherever the facts and evidence leads. AG Herring met with Mr. Lynch’s father and members of the Virginia Beach community in person on Tuesday and shared his commitment to pushing for an independent investigation, and one was announced later that day and is now under way.
Attorney General Herring has long believed that investigations of officer involved shootings should be handled by independent, unaffiliated agencies to maximize the public's confidence in the objectivity of an investigation and its outcome. While we appreciate the expression of confidence from these legislators, state law does not give the Office of Attorney General authority to launch its own investigation in a situation like this, and the General Assembly actually rejected granting the OAG such authority just last year in the special session on criminal justice reform."
The Lynch family said they are frustrated with the information investigators have put out about Donovon's death.
The City of Virginia Beach has said Donovon had a gun with him at the time of the shooting. Chief Neudigate said the police department doesn’t have body camera video, city camera video, or business camera video of the moment the officer shot and killed Lynch.