“Outrageous”: Black mother killed by Baltimore County police and bullet strikes 5-year-old son

Washington, DC, August 3, 2016–The National LGBTQ Task Force is calling for a full investigation into the Baltimore County Police killing of Korryn Gaines and the wounding of her child. Ms. Gaines is the 647th Black person to be killed by law enforcement across the nation this year.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the loved ones touched by this horrific incident. The attack on a 23-year-old black mother and son is outrageous and we call on the state and federal authorities to get to the truth behind what happened and to bring those individuals to justice. What makes this incident so despicable is the fact that a small child, while also being shot, was forced to watch their mother being killed at the hands of police. Far too often, police practices are applied unevenly—a situation involving a white person brandishing a gun is deescalated without gunfire, but if the person is Black, there is almost always, a much different and deadlier outcome. The National LGBTQ Task Force continues to advocate for systemic changes in how communities are policed in this country—from one designed to dehumanize black people to one that sincerely values black lives,” said Russell Roybal, Deputy Executive Director, National LGBTQ Task Force.

Today, the National LGBTQ Task Force joined Color of Change calling for police accountability by delivering over 500,000 petitions to the U.S. Department of Justice.

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CONTACT:
Jorge Amaro
Media and Public Relations Director
213-842-7564
jamaro@thetaskforce.org