Protesters have been gathering outside a Philadelphia police precinct after police shot and killed 27 year-old Walter Wallace Jr., a Black man, at 4pm yesterday afternoon. Police responded to a call made about Wallace who had a knife, and arrived at the scene with guns drawn in Cobbs Creek, a predominantly Black neighborhood in west Philadelphia. Sergeant Eric Gripp said officers immediately noticed the knife in his possession and that he was “waving it erratically.” After ordering Wallace to drop the weapon, Wallace continued walking towards the officers despite his mother’s efforts to stop him. Philadelphia police then opened fire and Wallace was hit in his shoulder and chest, resulting in his death at a nearby hospital later that night.
After the news broke, more than 300 protestors took to the streets. Twenty-nine police officers were hospitalized after being hit with rocks and bricks and a 56 year old policewoman was treated for a broken leg and other injuries after being struck with a pickup truck. A police car was set on fire while officers used their batons to disperse the growing crowds. Ten protestors were arrested under looting charges but have not yet been identified.
Police commissioner Daneille M. Outlaw has ordered an investigation into the shooting. She said she plans to speak with Wallace’s family and feels “the anger of the community” and understands “everyone involved will forever be impacted” by Wallace’s death.
Wallace’s family has since released a statement saying he was a recently married father who “didn’t deserve” to die.