Anger Over NJ Cops Who Killed Man With Arms Raised

A police video of officers confronting and fatally shooting a black man in southern New Jersey has raised questions and anger over another death at the hands of police. The video of the Dec. 30 killing of Jerame Reid in Bridgeton after a nearly two-minute standoff was released this week. A Philadelphia lawyer hired by Reid's wife to investigate says the footage "raises serious questions as to the legality and/or reasonableness of the officers' actions that night" because Reid was shot as he raised his hands. The dashboard camera video shows police pulled a Jaguar over for running a stop sign. But things suddenly turned tense when one of the officers warned his partner that he could see a gun in the glove compartment. "I'm going to shoot you," officer Braheme Days, who is black, shouted at Reid, the passenger. "If you reach for something, you're going to be f---ing dead."

Days, still yelling, reaches into the car and appears to remove a silver handgun. Days then tells his partner, "He's reaching for something." Faintly, Reid can be heard telling the officer, "I'm not reaching for nothing, bro." Then one of the men in the car tells the officer, "I'm getting out and getting on the ground." Seconds later, Reid emerges from the car, raising his hands, which appear to be empty. Days and his white partner, Roger Worley, fire at least six rounds, killing him. Both officers have been placed on leave while prosecutors investigate. Reid, 36, spent about 13 years in prison for shooting at three state troopers when he was a teenager. Days was among the arresting officers last year when Reid was charged with crimes, including drug possession and obstruction. In Bridgeton, the killing has stirred small protests over the past few weeks. (More police shooting stories.)