East Lansing Police push back release of video in fatal police shooting

The East Lansing Police Department said Thursday that it had delayed the planned release of video showing a “narrated timeline of the stabbing event that led to an officer-involved shooting on April 15.”

Isaiah Kirby, 21, was a Michigan State University student who loved snakes, worked part-time at Potter Park Zoo and was excited about a recent job interview, and also was the man shot by police following an alleged 6 p.m., April 15  altercation at a corner plaza in East Lansing at the busy intersection of Lake Lansing and Abbot roads.

His family was planning to see him graduate this spring but weeks before, Kirby was shot by police following an altercation at the plaza. Kirby’s mother, Karyn Kirby, said in a previous statement that she had counted 17 holes in her son’s body.

In a statement Thursday evening, the police department said:  “After meeting with the family of the decedent and their attorney this afternoon, and in consultation with the Michigan State Police who are the lead investigating agency, ELPD will be reevaulating and preparing what video footage may be released at a future date.”

Police have released little information about the shooting since it happened.

East Lansing Police Chief Jennifer Brown said in a news conference, hours after the shooting, that the original call involved a theft from a business and there was a second 911 call while officers were en route and that call indicated that a man “approached a second business and stabbed a victim multiple times. Upon arrival at the scene East Lansing Police Department officers encountered the suspect who appeared to have blood on his person and have an object in his hand that appeared to be a weapon. The suspect was observed running toward the officers on the scene. Officers ordered the suspect to drop the knife multiple times but the suspect refused to cooperate. Officers responded to the threat by shooting the suspect.”

Kirby’s family, through attorney Teresa Caine Bingman, said Thursday evening that the delay of the video’s release raised questions.

The statement said family was shown the video on Thursday.

“It was a highly edited, selectively compiled, and deeply one-sided presentation that raises more qeustions than answers. Nothing shown today justified the level of deadly force used against Isaiah Kirby,” the statement said.

The family’s statment says the video did not show a complete sequence of events, full officer interactions or uninterrupted body camera footage and it didn’t include important context. The statement questions the number of gunshots and wounds in his back.

“The family and the public have repeatedly demanded the release of the complete, raw, and unedited video evidence. To date, East Lansing Police Department and Michigan State Police have refused to provide that transparency,” the family’s statement said.