At rally, demand made for Walmart video of shooting

An estimated 100 people gathered Monday evening outside state Attorney General Mike DeWine's office to demand that his office release the in-store video from the Beavercreek Walmart recorded the night John Crawford III was shot by Beavercreek police while holding an air rifle/pellet gun.

"There's footage of his murder, but that footage ain't being released," Calla Thomas, an organizer of the rally, said. "We're here to demand the release" of the footage, she said.

The group called for transparency in the investigation, which is being headed up by the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, a branch of DeWine's office.

Jill Del Greco, spokeswoman for DeWine, has said she is not aware of any plans to release any video prior to the closing of the case.

On Aug. 14, Crawford family attorney Michael Wright requested surveillance video from Walmart from Aug. 5, the night police said they shot Crawford, 21, when he did not drop a Crosman MK-177 air rifle/pellet gun after receiving a 911 call from a customer saying a man was waving a rifle at people, including children.

Crawford died at Miami Valley Hospital.

Wright has also asked for Beavercreek police policies and procedures, personnel files of Officer Sean Williams and Sgt. David Darkow, all pertinent 911 calls and the incident report and all related materials. The Dayton Daily News also has requested the incident report and full narrative.

Beavercreek police have not released a narrative beyond one with a one-line description, "Dispatched to Walmart for a disturbance/weapons complaint."

Monday night's rally was the third since the shooting. Also on Aug. 14, some Dayton-area residents joined with others across the nation in a National Moment of Silence. They held a vigil for Crawford and 37-year-old Angela Williams of Fairborn, who died of a medical episode after she tried to leave the Walmart when shots were fired.

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