North Carolina Police Kill Unarmed Deaf, Mute Man Over Speeding

By teleSUR

23 August 16

Daniel Harris was killed “almost immediately” by a police officer as soon as he exited his car after being chased for a speeding violation.

olice in North Carolina shot and killed 29-year-old Daniel Harris, who was unarmed, deaf and mute, within seconds of his exiting his car after a speeding violation that turned into a chase near his home, neighbors told local media Monday.

"I was here in my driveway and I saw the highway patrol car come through and it was smoking really bad," Mark Barringer, Harris’s neighbor told local broadcaster WCNC. "About 10 seconds later, I heard one gunshot."

Barringer added that he went over to see what happened and saw Harris in the middle of the street after being shot just a few feet away from his front door. "It was surreal, you just don't expect to see something like that," said Barringer. "When the gunshot went off, it was scary."

Police claim that a traffic officer attempted to pull Harris over for speeding but he did not stop. The police then chased him until he stopped by his family’s house.

While investigators told media that Harris and the officer got into “an encounter," Barringer said Harris seemed to be attempting to communicate to the policeman in sign language.

"They should've de-escalated and been trained to realize that this is an entirely different situation, you're pulling someone over who is deaf, they are handicapped," said Barringer. "To me, what happened is totally unacceptable."

Black Lives Matter activist and commentator Shaun King wrote about the incident for the New York Daily News, highlighting how unlikely it seems that Harris posed any threat and questioning why the police resorted to lethal force.

“Beyond being unarmed, deaf and mute, Daniel Harris appears to have been a rather small, thin man,” King wrote, adding: “Opening fire could not have been the only option the officer had. What threat did Harris pose? Was a Taser or pepper spray used? Could the officer truly not subdue Harris on his own?”

Harris’ family and his siblings are also hearing impaired and could often be seen communicating with each other via sign language in the neighborhood, local residents said.

According to killedbypolice.com, at least 750 people have been killed by U.S. police so far this year. “This case boils down to the 'shoot first, ask questions later' training police are receiving all over the country,” King argued..

Harris' family started a fundraising campaign the day he was killed which has gathered more than US$6,000 of the US$20,000 target.

"Our family is raising funds to cover his memorial and cremation expenses (details pending). Any monies left over will be used to set up a foundation in his name to educate and provide law enforcement proper training on how to confront Deaf people,” the family said in the statement.

“Subsequently, we hope to change the DMV registration system by requiring states to set up a 'DEAF' alert to appear when law enforcement look up a car's license plate. With this change, Daniel will be a hero in our Deaf community," the statement said.

Harris’ killing comes amid a national debate in the United States over police brutality and the use of force against unarmed people, especially those who are Black or Latino.