Family of unarmed black man shot dead by Texas cop called to help with his mental health crisis release footage of the killing and call for officer to be arrested
The family of an unarmed black man shot dead by a white cop while he was suffering a mental health crisis have released doorbell footage of the killing as they call for the officer to be arrested and bodycam footage to be handed over.
Patrick Warren Sr., 52, died Sunday after allegedly being shot three times in the chest by Killeen Police Officer Reynaldo Contreras outside his home in the 1600 block of Carrollton Avenue in Killeen, Texas.
His devastated family said they had requested help from a mental health professional for the husband and father-of-three but that the officer turned up to their home instead.
Doorbell footage released by the family's attorney Wednesday shows Warren Sr. coming out of his front door with his arms in the air in front of him.
Separate footage shows the 52-year-old getting up from his knees on the front lawn before three shots ring out and a male's voice screams at the cop: 'I told you, don't use a gun'.
A protest was held in the area Thursday demanding justice for Warren Sr. as his death marks just the latest in a long line of police killings of black people across America.
The family of an unarmed black man shot dead by a white cop while he was suffering a mental health crisis have released doorbell footage of the killing as they call for the officer to be arrested and bodycam footage to be handed over
The doorbell footage begins with Contreras arriving at the door to the family home around 5:30 p.m. Sunday evening and ringing the doorbell.
Voices are heard inside saying 'come in' to which the officer replies: 'Is the door open?'
'Yes it's open,' a voice replies.
Contreras opens the door and steps in while saying 'hello'.
Voices are heard inside off-camera but it is not clear what they are saying.
'I will walk back out,' a voice, thought to be Contreras is heard at one point, before he is seen coming out the front door, shutting it behind him and walking away from the house.
The footage, which has been edited, then cuts to Contreras standing just on-camera on the front lawn to the left of the door with a beam of white light pointing in the direction of Warren Sr. who is walking out the front door.
'Let me see your hands,' Contreras is heard saying.
Warren Sr. has his hands and arms in the air in front of him.
He moves his arms in a circling motion to his side and walks toward the officer.
Inaudible shouting is heard as Contreras backs away and is no longer on camera - blocked by the side of the house.
Warren Sr. continues to hold his hands in the air as he walks slowly in the officer's direction.
At this point, a woman appears in the doorway and looks at what is happening.
Patrick Warren Sr., 52, died Sunday after allegedly being shot three times in the chest by Killeen Police Officer Reynaldo Contreras outside his home in the 1600 block of Carrollton Avenue in Killeen, Texas
His devastated family said they had requested help from a mental health professional for the husband and father-of-three but that the officer turned up to their home instead
A popping noise is heard at the same moment that Warren Sr. is no longer visible.
The woman runs back to the door before leaning out and shouting: 'hey.'
The video then cuts to separate footage, which appears to have been recorded on a smartphone.
Warren Sr. is seen on his knees on the grass before he clambers to his feet.
A male voice, presumably his son, is heard shouting: 'Hey, hey dad. Sit down!'
The voice repeatedly shouts 'sit down' and a woman is heard screaming as Warren Sr. walks off camera and is no longer visible.
Suddenly, three gunshots are heard.
Several people are heard screaming and shouting: 'No, don't shoot him!'
The male voice thought to be Warren Sr's son is heard shouting: 'No I told you, don't use a gun.'
'I told you, I told you,' he repeats multiple times after seeing Warren Sr. gunned down.
Warren Sr. was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The doorbell footage begins with Contreras arriving at the door to the family home around 5:30 p.m. Sunday evening and ringing the doorbell. Contreras leaves before returning again
The footage cuts to Contreras standing just on-camera on the front lawn to the left of the door with a beam of white light pointing in the direction of Warren Sr. who is walking out the front door. Warren Sr. has his hands and arms in the air in front of him
A woman appears in the doorway and looks at what is happening. A popping noise is heard at the same moment that Warren Sr. is no longer visible
Patrick Warren Jr., the victim's son, said the family had requested the help of a mental health officer and were surprised when the cop turned up.
They said they had also called for help the day before and - as requested - a mental health professional arrived at their home.
The professional managed to calm Warren Sr. down and took him to Advent Medical for treatment.
He then returned home but continued to suffer mental health issues the next day, his family said.
Warren Jr. told CBS Local the family asked Contrera to leave their home because he was 'hostile' toward them.
Contrera returned and knocked on the door again just moments later, he said.
He said his father answered the door and stepped out with his hands in the air.
At this point, he said he noticed the red beam of a taser shining on the door.
'The only reason we got up and walked to the door was because we saw an infrared beam from a taser on the door which concerned us. We heard a pop,' he told the outlet.
'We got up. We ran to the door. By the time we made it outside, my father was on the ground.'
Contreras, a five-year veteran of the force, was placed on administrative leave pending an investigation.
Lee Merritt, the attorney for Warren Sr.'s family and the person who released the footage, is calling for Contrera to be arrested and charged with Warren murder.
'#PatrickWarrenSr was murdered by @KilleenPD. He was on his own property. He was unarmed,' tweeted Merritt Wednesday.
'He was suffering a mental health crisis and simply needed help. Instead he was shot three times in his chest and tased. We demand the immediate arrest of this officer.'
The video then cuts to separate footage, which appears to have been recorded on a smartphone. Warren Sr. is seen on his knees on the grass before he clambers to his feet
A male voice, presumably his son, is heard shouting: 'Hey, hey dad. Sit down!' Warren Sr. walks off camera. Suddenly, three gunshots are heard. The male voice thought to be Warren Sr's son is heard shouting: 'No I told you, don't use a gun'
'A mental health call should not be a death sentence,' Merritt said in a statement.
It is not clear if Contreras has had any mental health training.
Merritt is also demanding Killeen Police Department release bodycam footage of the shooting and that Contrera's photo is released to the public.
Killeen Police Chief Charles Kimble said the department has launched an Internal Affairs investigation.
The Texas Rangers is handling the investigation into Warren Sr.'s death.
'As Killeen Police Chief, it is my duty to ensure a thorough investigation is conducted so that all parties, including the public, have the answers they seek,' said Kimble in a statement.
'There are many more facts in this case that are not publicly available at this time. I assure you that more information will be made available as soon as appropriate.'
Merritt, who has also represented the family of Ahmaud Arbery, said he is not interested in speaking to Kimble.
Warren Jr. told CBS Local his family - in particular his younger brother, who has Down Syndrome - has been struggling to come to terms with what happened.
'He's constantly - he was like, you know, 'My father's in heaven?' And I have to answer that question 1,000 times a day, and sometimes he just breaks down and he just wants to cry,' Warren Jr. said.
A rally was held outside of the Killeen police headquarters Thursday demanding justice for the 52-year-old black man and for change in how mental health situations are handled by authorities.
The demonstration was led by the Killeen group Brothers and Sisters Against Community Crime.
One community member at the rally told CBS Local they wanted to show 'this will not be tolerated in our community. You will not get away with killing this man on his property.'
A protest was held in the area Thursday night demanding justice for Warren Sr. as his death marks just the latest in a long line of police killings of black people across America
A GoFundMe account says Warren Sr. was the sole provider of his family but had lost his job during the coronavirus pandemic
Others said Killeen police officers had been seen continually driving by the home of Warren Sr.'s family since the shooting.
A GoFundMe account set up by Warren Jr. to help pay funeral expenses had topped $43,000 Friday.
It says Warren Sr. was the sole provider of his family but had lost his job during the coronavirus pandemic.
'Our main objective to make sure this doesn't happen again and that no one else has to go through a tragedy like this and watch your father be shot and killed by someone you called for help,' it reads.
Warren Sr.'s death marks the latest cop killing of black men and women in the last year.
Protests erupted across America and further afield after Floyd's 'murder' on Memorial Day 2020 after white cop Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for almost nine minutes.
EMT Breonna Taylor, 26, was shot six times in March when three plainclothes officers performed a botched raid at her Louisville apartment.
In June, unarmed father Rayshard Brooks was shot dead while he ran from cops in the drive-thru of a Wendy's restaurant in Atlanta.
Then, in August, Jacob Blake was shot seven times in the back by a white cop in front of his three young children, leaving the father-of-six paralyzed from the waist down.
Several incidents have also been during call outs for mental health situations.
Back in March, Daniel Prude, a 41-year-old black man, died after cops placed a spit hood over his head and pressed his face into the ground for two minutes in Rochester, New York, while he appeared to be suffering a psychotic episode.