In the name of transparency, the Birmingham Police Department held a press conference and showed video following a deadly officer-involved shooting that occurred on November 28. However, that decision led the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) to drop the investigation, CBS 42 reported.
BPD chief Michael Pickett revealed body-worn camera footage and surveillance video footage from the Kingston community showing what happened when Jamal D’Angelo Williams, 26, was shot.
A Housing Authority of Birmingham video of the incident shows an altercation and the suspect pacing through the housing community with a handgun, while harassing and assaulting people.
The police video shows officers responding and confronting Williams. Pickett explained the video as he showed it, saying the officer had to make a split-second decision for the safety of everyone on the scene after Williams presented his firearm.
Following the press conference on Wednesday, ALEA decided to hand the investigation back to BPD.
“The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) is sometimes asked by local law enforcement agencies to investigate use-of-force incidents,” ALEA said in a statement. “ALEA conducts these investigations independently and impartially, following Alabama’s body camera disclosure law (Alabama Code Sections 36-21-212 through 36-21-214) and Alabama Supreme Court precedent in order to safeguard the integrity of the case. When ALEA agrees to investigate, the local agency involved must also follow these same rules, and ALEA reserves the right to decline the request or return the investigative material to the local agency if those guidelines are not followed.
“In the officer-involved shooting investigation that involved an officer with the Birmingham Police Department and Jamal Dangelo Williams, ALEA has ended its investigation and will return the investigative material to the Birmingham Police Department on Thursday, Dec. 4.”
An officer-involved shooting in Homewood earlier this year prompted protests after investigators refused to release video. The shooting of Jabari Peoples was eventually ruled justified and after concluding the investigation, ALEA turned body-worn camera footage back over to the Homewood Police Department.
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