One of the officers involved in the shooting death of 53-year-old Louisville man David McAtee had made a Facebook post mocking a protester.
Another @LMPD officer being investigated after bragging in a Facebook post about shooting at a protester: “I hope the pepper balls that she got lit up with a little later on hurt – come back and get ya some more ole girl, I’ll be on the line again tonight” #KatieCrews @WLKY https://t.co/3vbxjMJ9Bu pic.twitter.com/CERdgOe1yt
— Stephon Dingle WLKY (@Stephon_Dingle) June 2, 2020
Screenshots from the account of Katie Crews showed her commenting on a Thursday picture from The Courier-Journal in which a protester appeared to give her a flower:
She was saying and doing a lot more than “offering flowers” to me. Just so for it to be known. For anyone that knows me and knows that my facial expression tells everything. P.S. I hope the pepper balls that she got lit up with a little later on hurt [Emojis showing a hand making the devil horn gesture; and a smiley face wearing sunglasses]. Come back and get ya some more ole girl, I’ll be on the line again tonight [arm flexing emoji].
Acting Police Chief Robert Schroeder told The Courier-Journal that he knows about the post, and initiated a professional standards investigation into it.
But an incendiary Facebook post is the least that Crews has to worry about. She and fellow officer Austin Allen were put on administrative leave after they, and two members of the National Guard opened fire early Monday morning; cops were trying to break up a crowd at Dino’s Food Mart and shots were fired at law enforcement, according to the official account. Police said one person was found dead at the scene. The victim was identified by family as local barbecue businessman David McAtee.
It has been widely reported that authorities killed McAtee, though Schroeder said at a press conference Monday afternoon that they don’t know who shot him, or if it was due to a separate incident.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer fired the chief’s predecessor–Steven Conrad–after it was determined that Crews and Allen didn’t have their body cameras on during the shooting of McAtee. Not that it changed a lot about Conrad’s professional fate: He was already due to retire this month, amid criticism of the police department’s shooting of Breonna Taylor in her home.
David McAtee, 53, owned Yaya’s BBQ, and was known around his neighborhood in Louisville as Yaya, or the BBQ Man. “Eventually,” he said, “I’m going to buy this lot and build.” Police shot and killed him on Monday. https://t.co/sCy3YuCv1c pic.twitter.com/IoIHhZYpOq
— Tejal Rao (@tejalrao) June 2, 2020
Witnesses and McAtee’s family said the crowd was actually part of a routine local get-together that happens every Sunday night for music and food, according to NBC 12. Relatives said that McAtee died trying to protect his niece. He often fed people–including police officers—for free, said family. In a press conference Monday, Schroeder said McAtee was a “good friend” to police.
[Screengrab via WLKY]
