Nashville Police Shootings Questioned
Incidents include killing of Korean American store owner
By Vicki Brown/AP

NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Four deaths in the past month involving Nashville police are clear evidence the city has a problem, some community leaders say.

Three men were shot by police, while the cause of a fourth death remained a mystery after an autopsy May 2 was inconclusive. Calvin Champion, an autistic man, died April 30 after police used chemical spray and held him down to subdue him.

“Look at the cold hard facts. Nashville is not New York or Chicago or L.A. It’s a mid-sized city. This kind of police use of force is unusual,” said Ray Winbush, director of Fisk University’s Race Relations Institute.

Police spokesman Don Aaron said each death involved different circumstances and is being investigated separately.

“The department has shown in the past that if any wrongdoing has occurred we will do our best to ferret it out and deal with those responsible,” he said.

Both Winbush and Hedy Weinberg, executive director of Tennessee’s chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, said leaders should acknowledge something is wrong in the city of approximately 500,000.

“We have four deaths that shouldn’t have happened,” Weinberg said.

Winbush challenged Police Chief Emmett Turner to name any comparable U.S. city that has had so many deaths involving police.

“It’s easy to Monday morning quarterback, but I think it’s a leadership problem,” he said. ``He (Turner) has to stand up and say if you are ever involved in a use of deadly force that is inappropriate, we are going to prosecute you.”

Patrick Willard, a spokesman for Mayor Bill Purcell, said changes were made after police found evidence last year that Latino residents had been abused by off-duty police officers moonlighting for a private security firm.

“We have a civilian at the head of the Office of Professional Accountability, which replaced Internal Affairs,” Willard said. And a consulting group is working with the department on handling internal investigations.

“That’s one reason it’s so important that this office be given a chance to do its job,” Willard said.

All four deaths will be reviewed by the new office, headed up by civilian lawyer Kennetha Sawyers.

Both Winbush and Weinberg expressed concern that all four dead were members of a minority group—black, Korean or mentally retarded.

Weinberg said she wants to see if Sawyers finds satisfactory answers that will rebuild faith in police.

“We all want a safe community. We need law enforcement,” Weinberg said.

The first death, March 30, occurred when police shot Timothy Hayworth, a robbery suspect four officers said tried to run them down. On April 9, Larry Davis was shot after two officers stopped him for speeding and said they feared he was going to run them down when they questioned him about what appeared to be drugs and cash.

A Korean shop owner, Chong Hwan An, was fatally shot April 21 by two officers when he ignored their orders to drop his gun after he shot at two armed robbers who had just held up his beauty supply shop.

Champion died after police were called when he became violent with his caregiver and her 3-year-old daughter.

Aaron said the officers did not strike Champion, even when he grabbed an officer by the throat.

“They knew the man was mentally retarded, they used minimal force, mainly two blasts of pepper spray,” Aaron said.

The medical examiner’s office said a cause of death should be determined in about three weeks, when results of autopsy lab tests are in.

The Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation is also investigating Champion’s death, since he was in the care of Outlook Nashville. The state contracts with that agency to provide care that allows mentally retarded people to live in the community.

Autism is a neurological disorder that affects ability to communicate, understand language and relate to others. Some with autism cannot speak.