Standing on the steps of their local church, where their 38-year-old brother was shot and killed, Brandon Boyd’s siblings Tuesday demanded the Long Beach Police Department quickly release body camera video and 911 call data that could shed more light on what happened on Nov. 19.
“He never imagined they (police) would slaughter him infront of the church he grew up in,” said Tyerra Boyd, Brandon’s oldest sister.
“He was peaceful and in need of help,” said Tiffany Boyd, Brandon’s younger sister. “The police decided to escalate the situation by deploying a flash grenade that lead to the fatal shooting of my big brother.”
In a statement, Long Beach police wrote “officers responded to a text to 9-1-1… about a man with a gun in front of a church. Upon arrival, officers located the man who stated he was the one who sent the message.”
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Police said they engaged with Boyd in standoff for two and a half hours, which included SWAT, a hostage negotiator and a mental health evaluation team.
“After over two and a half hours of attempted de-escalation and in an effort to separate the suspect from the firearm, officers deployed less-lethal foam projectiles and a flashbang as a diversionary tactic. The suspect pointed the firearm at officers, resulting in an exchange of gunfire between officers and the suspect.”
“The reality is the officers were extremely patient,” Long Beach Police Chief Wally Hebeish had said on the night of the incident. “This speaks to de-escalation, and they tried to do everything they could to resolve this situation safely.”
Boyd was killed at the scene. One officer was injured and taken to local hospital where the officer was treated and released.
The Boyd family said the mental health resources who were dispatched to the scene were not actually used to de-escalate the situation.
“(The) trained mental health professionals were on the scene but never engaged my brother,” said Tiffany Boyd.
The family said they pleaded with police to let them talk to Boyd to help.
Instead after the shooting, two sisters and a cousin were arrested.
“Three subjects entered the crime scene and refused to comply with officers’ commands to exit the scene. Two subjects were arrested for obstructing of a police officer, and an additional subject was arrested for obstructing a police officer and battery on a police officer,” said the police department's statement,
The family demanded those charges be dropped and the officers involved in the shooting be charged.
“A multi-level review of this incident is ongoing,” said the the police department. "The LBPD anticipates releasing body-worn camera footage from the incident in the near future. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office is also reviewing the incident, consistent will all officer-involved shootings.”
