Victoria Lee was killed after making a 911 call for medical assistance, as captured by a body camera.
Body camera footage from Fort Lee, New Jersey, moments before a police officer fatally shot 25-year-old Victoria G. Lee, shows several policemen screaming, “Drop the knife!” as Lee threw a huge water jug at them. Then there’s a gunshot.
The Taser video, four officers’ body camera footage, and two July 28 911 calls were made public by the New Jersey attorney general’s office on Friday. The office is conducting an investigation into the incident.
It follows weeks of public indignation over how Lee’s 911 request for medical assistance—his family claimed he was going through a mental health crisis—turned lethal moments after law enforcement arrived.
The incident happened in a city in New Jersey with a sizable Korean and Asian American community. Requests on Tony Pickens Jr., the officer who fired the fatal shot, and his job status were not answered by the Fort Lee Police Department on Saturday.
The family’s persistent attempts to stop the situation from getting worse are made clear by the video and call records. Lee’s brother made a second 911 call, telling dispatchers he wanted to withdraw his plea for assistance since his sister was carrying a folding knife. Body-camera footage from the situation showed Lee’s mother pleading with the cops to stay outside as Lee got more and more agitated.
Lee’s family was not able to be reached for comment on Saturday. But in a statement written earlier this month provided by their attorney, the family said, “The pain and grief our family is experiencing are beyond words. Victoria was a bright and loving individual with a promising future, and her untimely death has left a void that can never be filled.”
According to Lee’s family, Lee had bipolar disorder, which she had been managing through work, traveling and playing music. On the night of her death, she was demonstrating odd behavior, like shouting and rolling on the bed, which led her mother to suggest Lee seek medical help. The family added that Lee was never a violent person, even in previous episodes of mental distress.
According to them, the presence of police upset Lee, and when officers arrived, they did not consult with the family about the safest course of action and handled the situation aggressively.
NPR detailed What the 911 call recordings reveal