Screenshot via New Rochelle Police Department

Isa Muhammad, the driver stopped by officers in the shooting death of Kamal Flowers, does not believe Flowers possessed the gun authorities said he did.

Update 7/16/2020: New Rochelle resident Isa Muhammad told The Journal News yesterday that he is positive he and Flowers were racially profiled when stopped by police on June 5, that no traffic violation had been committed, and that he he did not believe Flowers was carrying the firearm he is accused of aiming at police before being shot to death following an extended foot chase.

By Dan Murphy Last week, a Westchester Grand Jury declined to charge New Rochelle Police Officer Alec McKeanna in the death of Kamal Flowers. What is not in dispute is that Flowers, 24, was shot by New Rochelle Police Officer Alec McKenna, on June 5, 2020, and later died. Flowers friends, family and the some. New Rochelle Daily Voice, September 25, 2015. New Rochelle Police Commissioner Carroll earns prestigious national honor St. Louis American, September 18, 2015. Chiefs call for reform of use of force, Police Executive Research Forum releases new critical report on training Boston Globe, September 6, 2015. Column: Police seek ways to save lives. New Rochelle has issued its “Police Reform and Reinvention Collaborative Plan.” The product of many months of discussion, the document will be the subject of a formal public hearing in February and must then be submitted to the State in final form by April 1.

“It wasn’t that kind of day … I don’t believe he had a weapon,” Muhammad says in the interview.

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In the video, Muhammad relates driving to a well-lit area with cameras in case the traffic stop went wrong, and then officers demanding he and Flowers exit the vehicle. Flowers got out first and ran, at which point Muhammad says one of the officers shouted at his partner using a racial slur before leaving Muhammad behind to assist in the chase by car.

The Westchester County District Attorney’s office is currently investigating the case and is aware of the accusation, though denies racial profiling played a part in the traffic stop and shooting, according to a spokesperson for the city*.

Original story continues below.

Just days after more than 1,000 protesters lined New Rochelle’s streets to protest the use of excessive force by police and the pattern of killing black men in America, 24 year-old Kamal Flowers was shot after fleeing officers during a traffic stop and allegedly pulling a weapon.

Officers received a call Friday night from a resident of New Rochelle’s Heritage Village that a Dodge Charge with tinted windows and Virginia license plates had been “operating in an unusual fashion,” according to the NRPD. Just before 11 p.m., uniformed officers stopped a car matching that description for unspecified traffic violation near Pierce St. and Potter Ave.

According to the police report and matching private surveillance video released by the New Rochelle Police Department, Flowers immediately exited the front passenger seat and ran. One of the responding officers pursued on foot, firing his Taser, then reportedly scuffling with Flowers. It’s at this time, the report says, that Flowers showed a gun and pointed it at the officer, who fired his own weapon six times. One shot stuck Flowers.

Officers pulled Flowers to the side of the road and provided medical assistance, but he was declared dead in the ambulance en route to a nearby hospital. An unlicensed Ruger 9mm handgun was recovered from the suspect, who had been released on parole after serving 2 years for felony robbery and was not legally permitted to possess a firearm.

“This tragic event, which would be traumatic under any circumstances, comes at a moment of intense local and national focus on issues of police violence and systemic racism,” says New Rochelle Mayor Noam Bramson. “All of us are called to work together, alongside community leaders and advocates, to pursue the broader cause of racial justice and peace in New Rochelle.”

Warning: Graphic Content

The incident is being investigated by the Westchester County District Attorney’s office. State Attorney General Letitia James declined to investigate, saying that police shootings involving armed civilians falls outside the scope of the AG’s office. Both officers involved have been placed on administrative leave.

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*Correction: An earlier version of this update attributed a statement from a spokesperson for the City of New Rochelle to the Westchester District Attorney’s office. This has since been amended.

In June 2020, Governor Cuomo enacted an executive order on Police Reform and Reinvention requiring each government entity in New York which has a police agency to perform a comprehensive review of current police force deployments, strategies, policies, procedures and practices and develop a plan to improve these areas. This coincided with a similar request by the New Rochelle City Council, also in June 2020. The Policing Review Committee members were announced by City Manager Charles B. Strome,III on August 17.

The Committee met throughout the fall and a draft report was presented to City Council at the Council's November 24 special meeting. The Governor's Executive Order requires a report submission by April 1, 2021.

The Police Review Committee will examine the following issues:

• Use of Force policy/training

• Data disclosure and transparency

• Community engagement

• Oversight/Discipline/Complaint procedures

• Equipment

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• Other issues

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Public input is welcomed during this process.Submit comments