LELAND, Miss.–Last week Kadarius Smith, 17, was hit and killed by a police patrol car in Leland. Now attorney Ben Crump, a nationally-known Civil Rights attorney, has signed on to represent the Smith family.
Crump says Smith was hit March 21 and that the patrol car was behind him, appearing to have chased him down, with tire marks on his back. Smith died at the hospital.
“The circumstances surrounding Kadarius’ death are truly heartbreaking for his mother and loved ones. This tragedy should have never happened and the officers involved must be held accountable,” said crump, in a prepared statement.
“It is unconscionable that an officer would fatally run over a teenager who was running away from them. We demand that the officer who was driving the cruiser be immediately terminated, and that the unedited video footage is released to the family. Kadarius’ family deserves accountability and answers as to how and why he was killed by an officer in such an inhumane way.”
Crump most recently represented the family of Dexter Wade in Mississippi. Wade was hit by a patrol car in Jackson, and was buried in a pauper’s grave.
