Family demands justice after bodycam video details deadly Savannah Police shooting
The Claiborne Firm released bodycam footage December 4 of Saudi Lee's shooting by ex-Savannah officer Ernest Ferguson
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SAVANNAH, Georgia (WJCL) — More than two years after the death of Saudi Lee, the 31-year-old shot and killed by a former Savannah Police Department officer, the Claiborne Firm, which represents Lee’s family, released new body camera footage from the moment shots were fired.
Attorneys and the family gathered Wednesday for a press conference and demanded accountability.
“Watching my brother get murdered is the hardest thing I’ve ever seen,” said Dorothy Lee, Saudi Lee’s sister. “There was no reason for him to be shot, and now the whole world can see the truth.”
In the footage, moments before the gunshots from former Savannah police officer Ernest Ferguson, there is clear audio of the two men yelling at each other, but it is not easy to make out what they say.
Immediately after, the video shows Lee running away with a gun in hand, and Ferguson fires his gun four times.
Ten minutes later, a detective asks Ferguson to recall the incident.
“I tried to help him. He pulled his gun, saying, ‘You’re going to have to kill me.’ And then he started running away. But, he was still pointing the gun up towards us, so I shot,” Ferguson said to the detective.
“There is no other word for what happened to Saudi other than murder,” said William R. Claiborne, The Claiborne Firm managing attorney.
“What does justice look like at the end of this?” asked WJCL 22 News’ AJ Sisson.
“Justice looks like accountability,” Claiborne said. “Mayor Johnson said that if the officer was right, they would stand behind them. But, if the officer was wrong, that they would stand behind the family. Well, we call on Mayor Johnson now to come forward and stand with and behind this family.”
WJCL 22 News reached out to city of Savannah spokesperson Joshua Peacock, in response to the demand for accountability.
The city of Savannah said, “There are currently both criminal and civil cases active in the court system. The City is a named party in one of those cases. The City does not comment on active or pending litigation.”
Ferguson pleaded not guilty in a recent hearing in November, granting him the possibility of a jury trial.
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