An attorney for the family of a 21-year-old man shot and killed by Concord police in Antioch this month is calling for an impartial state or federal agency to take over the ongoing investigation into the shooting that he claims has been grossly mischaracterized so far.
“This should be a criminal investigation, without question,” said attorney Peter Johnson, who represents the family of slain Bay Point resident Charles Burns. “Someone needs to be proactive to make sure it is a fair investigation, and let me tell you, what is going to come out is going to be atrocious.”
Burns was shot and killed by members of the Concord Police Department gang unit May 10 while running from officers, after he was a passenger in a car that rammed a police patrol car, according to the Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office, which oversees the investigation into all officer-involved killings in the county.
“As he ran into the intersection, Mr. Burns partially turned toward officers while jamming his hands into the front waistband of his pants,” the District Attorney’s Office wrote in a statement released Thursday in response to Johnson’s allegations. “Despite police commands to the contrary, Mr. Burns continued this action, and two officers fired their service weapons…Read More
