Family members, community protest deadly officer-involved shooting in Miami Township

MIAMI TWP. — Dozens of people gathered outside of the Miami Township Police Department to protest an officer-involved shooting on Saturday.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WHIO-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

As previously reported by News Center 7, Jayden Stephenson was shot and killed by Miami Township police at a home on Sawgrass Drive on Feb. 19.

“Jayden needed help. He needed to go to the hospital for evaluation. And the police were unwilling to help with that,” one protester told News Center 7.

>>PHOTOS: Family members, community protest deadly officer-involved shooting in Miami Township

Family and community members in attendance held signs that read “Justice for Jayden,” “7 minutes is not enough,” “Mental Health Matters” and more.

TRENDING STORIES:

The Miami Township Police Department released body camera video and the 911 call for this shooting last week.

>>WATCH: Body camera shows moments leading to deadly police shooting in Miami Twp.

In a 911 call, a woman told dispatchers that her son, Stephenson, had threatened the family with a knife. She also said she believed her son was struggling with mental health issues.

Body camera video showed officers initially speaking with Stephenson, who was sitting inside with a knife, from the front door of the home before going inside.

Alan Statman, a lawyer representing Stephenson’s family, said the 21-year-old only had a small box cutter from his job in his hands.

Video shows officers telling Stephenson to drop the knife multiple times. Police previously said officers gave him that command 29 times through the seven minutes leading up to the shooting.

Stephenson eventually stood up and walked toward the staircase of the home. At that point, officers deployed a taser and a bean bag gun which did not stop him from running upstairs into a locked bedroom.

Officers followed him upstairs and kicked in the door. Stephenson was found lying on the ground in a connecting bathroom.

From there, police used a taser and bean bag gun again on Stephenson. He got up and moved toward officers, at which time at least one officer fired their gun at him, hitting and killing him.

According to a previous News Center 7 report, Stephenson’s family does not believe the shooting was justified and their lawyer thinks it was absurd.

“I’m going to tell you that if he had a gun, he’d still be alive today,” Statman said. “They wouldn’t have gone in that house. They would have called a SWAT team. They would have brought in a negotiator, a crisis manager, and it would have been a long, drawn-out process before something like this would have happened.”

The family said Friday that he had been dealing with mental health issues, but did not pose a threat to himself or his family.

Five officers were placed on paid administrative leave pending the completion of the investigation by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.

A spokesperson for the township told News Center 7 that they can’t release further information as the Ohio BCI investigation is ongoing.

“We hope this brings awareness... and that people, the police need better training, better education on mental health, on what they’re supposed to do, what they’re able to do. Or people with mental health training needs to go with the police on runs. And we hope this somehow brings some kind of justice for Jayden,” one protestor said.

News Center 7 will continue to follow this story.

0 of 17