ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. — Civil rights activists and attorneys are urging the Elizabeth City district attorney to recuse himself from the Andrew Brown Jr. case because of close ties he has with the Pasquotank County Sheriff's Office.
Ben Crump, Bakari Sellers and Harry Daniels sent a letter to District Attorney Andrew Womble detailing this request.
All three attorneys have been closely following this case and have been in Elizabeth City to support Brown's family and speak to the greater community.
All three held a press conference where they released the findings of an independent autopsy done on Brown's body. Those results showed that Brown was shot four times in the right arm and then in the back of the head. Crump called that last bullet a "kill shot to the back of the head."
Crump, Sellers and Daniels also support the public release of body camera footage showing Brown's death -- something that was struck down by a Pasquotank County judge, at least until the NCSBI investigation is complete.
Attorney Ben Crump released the following statement:
“We need justice for Andrew Brown Jr., and we’ll only get that through a fair and impartial investigation. The involved officers have close relationships with District Attorney Andrew Womble, making him unfit to lead the investigation into Andrew’s killing. While we have yet to review the bodycam footage despite a judge’s order, what we do know is crystal clear: Andrew Brown Jr., was shot five times by these officers as he was driving away. We will not stop until we get answers and justice for Andrew and his family, and that begins and ends with an impartial and transparent investigation.”
Attorney Bakari Sellers also released a statement:
“We demand that District Attorney Andrew Womble remove himself from this investigation because of his ties to the Elizabeth City Sheriff’s office. Womble’s involvement would be a miscarriage of justice for Andrew Brown Jr., his family, and the people of Elizabeth City. Andrew was assassinated by these officers as he was driving away, posing little threat. As we still have yet to review the bodycam footage in this case, it’s clear that a transparent investigation is not at all guaranteed. We can’t leave anything in this case to chance - D.A. Womble must recuse himself.”
Read the full letter below:
Deputies shot Brown last month as he drove away from them while they were attempting to execute a search warrant in Elizabeth City.
Seven Pasquotank County sheriff’s deputies were put on leave following Brown’s death. Four of them were allowed back to work, while three Investigator Daniel Meads, Deputy Robert Morgan, and Corporal Aaron Lewellyn -- are still on leave. The sheriff noted that those three fired shots during the incident.