American Skin (2019) Movie Script
2
- How you doing tonight?
- Doing well, Officer.
Can I see your
driver's license,
registration
and insurance, please?
Of course. My license
is right here in my wallet.
I need to reach past my
14 year-old son
to get my registration
insurance from the glove box.
- Is that all right?
- Sure.
Okay.
One second, my son.
You live in the area?
No, sir.
Where you
coming from?
Picking up my son
from a friend's house.
Here you go.
You're on parole
or have any warrants
- I should know about?
- No, sir.
Are you aware your insurance
has expired?
Uh, it must be
an old copy...
The car definitely
has insurance.
Uh, I might
have a new copy...
Hey, keep your hands
where I can see them, sir.
Relax. Right here, sir.
Right here.
It's okay. It's all right.
It's all right.
Oh, thank you.
Can I have you step out
of the vehicle?
Uh, sure.
Undo my seatbelt.
It's okay.
It's all right.
It's all right, Son.
- Hands up.
- Hey, hey, hey, hey.
Wait, wait, wait.
- Sir, sir, sir he's a kid.
- Put your hands on the dashboard
right now. Drop the whatever
you have in your hand.
- Put the phone down.
- It's my phone.
- It's my phone.
- Sir, it's a phone.
It's a cell phone,
it's just a cell phone.
Put the phone down.
Exit the car and put
your hands in the air.
Officer, please.
He's just a kid.
- I can talk to him.
- Please, he's just a kid.
Exit the car
with your hands in the air.
He's gonna get out.
Okay, get out of the car son.
Easy, easy.
- It's just a phone.
- I need you to put the phone away.
Put the phone away
and sit on the curb.
He's unarmed, okay.
He's just...
- Sir, just let us do our job.
- Put the phone away and sit on the curb.
- Put the fucking phone away.
- Put it down!
Put the fucking phone away!
May I help you?
Linc, I'm Jordin King.
We talked a few times
on the phone.
The student filmmaker.
We spoke about me possibly
doing some interviews with you
around what happened
to your son.
Come on in.
Come on.
Come on.
A mark.
B mark.
Just put
the belt pack on.
Who will all this be seen by?
My class mostly.
Professors, staff.
If people respond to it,
we'll try and get it
into some festivals.
Festivals?
A festival is like
a group of public screenings.
Only, it's curated.
People get dressed up,
they go see it,
and when it's over,
everyone looks around
for reactions.
If the right people
hate it, it dies,
and if the right
people love it,
we get a chance
to bring it to the world.
So this could be seen
by people over the world.
It's possible.
What's that?
That's B cam.
Just another angle,
something behind the scenes.
So I've got
some questions,
kind of all over the place.
Some easy stuff,
some hard.
Anything you don't
feel like answering,
you don't have to.
Can you say your name
into the camera?
Um, Lincoln Jefferson.
I go by Linc.
By now, a lot of people
know about KJ
and what happened
to him.
But few people know
who KJ was
or what he was like.
In one word or a sentence even,
how would you
describe him?
You know, um,
I can show you
better than
I can tell you.
What happens when old people
act like they're young people?
Is that you?
Kind of.
I'm not trying to spend
Christmas in an emergency room.
Okay, y'all know me
and how much I can do.
Oh!
It was all the time,
every day he was um...
He was just funny.
Um, smart,
uh, just an all around
good kid, you know?
Mm-hmm.
- Yeah.
Can you tell me what happened
on July 3rd of last year?
- Put it away!
- Please, listen...
- All right.
- Thank you so much.
You're welcome.
Oh, no, I'm good.
Thank you.
Oh, no,
I'm good. Thank you.
Okay.
You just
put this right here.
All right.
And you can put
the belt pack on yourself.
Oh. Okay. Thanks.
Linc said you helped raise KJ
when he was a baby.
Yeah, I did.
I helped raise
all my grandkids.
You know,
Linc and Tayana
well, they kind of
started out young,
like, you know,
a lot of people do,
but you just do
what you can to help.
You know,
he went to the service.
Iraq. Kept us safe.
Did what he had to do
and for him to come back
and for them to treat him
like they do...
- Mom.
- No. Now, you know that ain't right.
Now he did good
by KJ.
He had him, going to
one of those top schools, too.
On the pass.
A pass?
A pass is like a permit.
Yeah 'cause I worked
in the district.
That was how I was able
to get him into school.
Yeah, that KJ,
he was a good boy.
I mean, he started, you know,
acting out a little
when Tayana and Linc split.
But, I mean, that's normal
for boys at age 13.
That's when
you lose them.
But when he moved in
with Linc, you know,
it settled him down.
A boy needs
a man in his life.
I mean, he ought
to have one.
I mean, how else
is he supposed to know
what a man
is supposed to act like
or if he's
one himself?
That boy
was all that Linc had
and they took him away.
For nothing.
I mean, if, if it would
have happened,
you know, if he lived
in this neighborhood,
it would have made
more sense.
Make more sense how?
These young boys
get beat down
by the cops or worse
all the time.
More instances of police
brutality in poor communities?
No, baby. More instances
of police brutality
in Black communities.
Seriously?
Come on, I get these
priceless moments.
- Why?
- First day of school, new school.
Tell me how it went.
It was... It was crazy.
Okay, crazy good
or crazy bad?
Crazy weird.
Lockers outside,
they play rap during lunch,
which is hilarious.
Mmm-hmm.
Gucci Mane on the loudspeakers.
Gucci!
White people everywhere,
heads bobbin' off-beat.
It was like
a Key and Peele skit.
But everybody's cool.
A lot of them
extra cool.
Probably just want to say
they're hanging out
with the only black kid
in school.
But no drama.
They have like these mini
restaurants in the school.
And you can have just about
anything you want.
And there wasn't even
one fight all day.
How do you feel you two
splitting up affected him?
It's hard to tell,
but I'm sure it did.
You know, Tayana, she's...
She was such
a great mother.
I mean,
great mother
and we wanted
to make it work.
But once I got back
from the military,
everything changed.
You know, I had some... Some things
I wanted to do when I got back.
Some dreams.
And people don't really talk
about the thing you face
when you come home.
Financial hardships,
dealing with unemployment,
problems trying to get help
from the VA.
You know, all that stuff
can really hurt your pride.
Hmm, it just...
It really took a toll on us.
Hmm.
Where did you serve?
Two tours in Iraq.
Twenty one months,
all in all.
Wow. What did you do?
Infantry rifleman.
What was that like?
It was war.
I see he was into Malcolm.
Yeah, he was definitely
into Malcolm.
Yeah, he asked
a lot of questions,
and I tried to teach him
a lot about
who he was knowing his history,
his identity,
knowing his rights.
He was into it.
I mean, he even got the school
to teach on the Black Panthers
during Black History Month.
Which was a really
proud moment.
Did you ever talk
to him about the police?
So you're saying
by law,
you can resist the cops,
like you can fight them back?
Yeah. If you
didn't do nothing.
Who said that?
The US Supreme Court.
"One has an unalienable right
to protect his life,
"liberty or property
from unlawful attack or harm.
"Therefore, it's not
an offense to liberate
"one from the unlawful
custody of an officer."
So that's really what they're
teaching with the white kids?
Hey, it sounds
like bullshit to me.
That's 'cause you're
stuck in the school
where they
don't teach you shit.
If the cop don't conform
to the law of the land,
I can resist
and protect myself.
It's just the law.
What's up?
Hey, just studying for the
government test tomorrow.
Studying, huh?
- What's up Mr. Linc.
- What up, Jonah?
What were you just saying,
just now?
Telling Jonah
what we learned in class.
He don't believe it.
The law says
you can defend yourself
from an unlawful attack
from anybody
even the police, right?
- Well...
- He's crazy, right, Mr. Linc?
- I mean, he's technically right.
- Technically?
- Well, yes, in theory...
- But the law is the law.
"A citizen illegally arrested
"cannot initiate
the use of force,
"and neither do words alone
justify an assault."
- Hey, KJ...
- "However, when the officer
"initiates the assault
by physical contact..."
- All right listen to me.
- "...which is the case..."
- What I'm trying to tell you...
- "There's an unlawful..."
- There is a difference...
- "...arrest, there, a citizen
"has a right to protect his
liberty, to the extent
- "of killing the officer..."
- Look... Stop, all right? Stop!
Don't say those words.
All right.
Don't even think them.
Hey, um, I'll call
you back later.
No, no, no. Stay on, Jonah.
You need to hear this too.
Look, citizens
have rights, yes.
There are all kinds of laws and
documents and cases that say so.
But the citizens
they're talking about
don't always look like us.
Especially not to the police.
- But the Supreme Court...
- I understand that.
What you need to understand
is those laws
weren't written
with us in mind.
And anyone that tells you
differently, is either white
or just lucky they haven't had
to put it to the test yet.
So I'm just supposed to forget
everything you ever told me
about self-respect and dignity
and standing up
for what I believe in?
Yes, yes. If it means you're coming
home to me safely, absolutely.
I know it doesn't
make sense to you now,
but one day
when you have kids
it'll be crystal clear,
trust me.
Look at me.
When you're dealing
with the police
you don't think of laws.
You don't think of rights.
None of that.
You just do whatever they say, their way.
All right?
That way you will live.
Could live
to make it home to me.
You understand?
What's up, guys?
Wow.
- Nice, huh?
- Yeah.
Nadir.
This is what
you get.
It was well worth it, you know.
Anyone would want
their kids to go here.
No one dreams
of coming out of the service
and becoming a custodian,
but I knew I had to do something to
get him out of the situation he was in.
Wanted to take advantage
of the opportunities here
and when I asked, you know,
how to get him in,
first thing they said is
"You gotta live here,
"or have a job here.".
The houses start
at a million dollars,
so I knew that wasn't
gonna happen.
So I applied.
Why do you think
you stayed after, um...
After a year and a half?
- Why I stayed?
- Yeah.
I don't know. Routine.
Get that bucket.
How are you
and Linc related?
We're brothers,
not blood brothers.
We are blood brother,
it's not biological, as I put it.
How'd you meet?
Overseas. Same squad,
same fire team.
Lincoln and I actually
grew up near each other.
Just never met.
It's something else.
But, you know,
same old story.
Came up hard,
was no kind of student.
You mess up enough times
it's only a matter of time
before you get locked up.
How old are you?
I'm 21.
When I was a little bit
younger than you,
I went into the Marines.
You served
in the Middle East together.
- We did.
- Can you elaborate?
Nah.
It's kind of crazy
how hard
it is to get people
to talk about it.
Yeah, you have to live it
to understand why.
You were
in the hospital.
Yeah, chemo.
Last treatment
was this morning.
Wow. Congrats, man.
I didn't say I beat it.
I said it was the
last treatment.
First and last.
I looked like shit.
I feel like shit.
I ain't doing that again.
Doctors say it metastasized.
- Meaning...
- I-I know what it means.
Hmm.
So anyway, yeah, I figured
why lose my hair, you know?
If I lose weight,
dying before it kills me...
Nah, I ain't got long.
I'll just ride it out.
I'm sorry.
It is what it is.
Got it right here.
This is it.
It is what it is.
Don't you ever forget that.
It is what it is.
All right, all right.
Let's go.
Oh, you're good, bro.
We'll be back.
Linc, can you give a little
background on what's happening?
Into the camera?
Yeah, we're headed
to the courthouse
for the grand jury decision
and, uh,
we are optimistic
and we hope
it goes our way.
- Good?
- Good.
All right. All right,
let's go, let's go.
Let's head out.
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
We're here live outside
the LA County courthouse.
Where, as you can see
behind me,
both protesters and police
supporters are waiting
to see if Officer Mike Randall
will be indicted
on charges stemming
from last year's shooting
of 14-year old
Kajani Jefferson.
Justice for Kajani!
Justice for Kajani!
Justice for Kajani!
- Justice for Kajani.
- Back the blue.
- Justice for Kajani!
- Back the blue!
Justice for Kajan!
Justice for Kajani!
After their exhaustive
review of the evidence,
the grand jury deliberated
over two days,
making their
final decision.
They determined that no
probable cause exists
to file any charges
against Officer Randall.
They returned a no true bill
on each of the five claims.
- The physical...
- Officer Randall will be returning to service
effective immediately according to
standard protocol in such cases.
Excuse me, Officer.
Listen, I need to talk to you,
I just need to know why.
Can you just tell me why?
Please don't...
So you're
gonna shoot me?
Is that what you're
gonna do shoot me, right?
Because I have
a gun, right?
Because I'm a threat, right?
You coward!
You hide behind that badge.
You're a coward!
I lost my baby.
Ah, man.
It's okay.
It's gonna be
all right.
You're all right.
You're all right.
Okay?
You'll be all right.
The announcement
of a grand jury's decision
not to indict San Vacilo
police officer Mike Randall
in the shooting death of
unarmed teen Kajani Jefferson
was met with chaos
on Tuesday night.
Miss Jefferson,
I need your help.
Uh, the city
need your help.
Make a statement
on camera.
Tell the community
that violence is not the way.
Man, do you hear yourself?
Talking all that
no violence bullshit.
Y'all niggas should have
thought about that shit
before y'all killed
my cousin, man.
Can you please
turn that off?
Can you please
get the fuck out!
Jayden, stop!
Look, I can
only imagine
- how you're feeling right now...
- Do you have kids?
- Yes, ma'am.
- Mmm.
- Two little girls.
- Are they breathing?
Hmm?
You couldn't possibly
imagine how I feel.
You have no idea
how I feel.
- You're right.
- I know.
- Yes, ma'am, you're right.
- Mmm-hmm.
And I'm truly
sorry for your loss,
but we can't change the past.
Man, fuck you.
What the fuck! Now you want
to talk all this peace shit?
So no one else
gets hurt?
Where the fuck was all that
when y'all killed KJ, huh?
- Fuck, nigga.
- Look, young man,
- I'm gonna need you to calm down.
- Man, I don't give a fuck.
- Don't "young man" me. None of that shit!
- Right now.
I don't give a fuck.
- You work in public service, motherfucker.
- Calm down!
What the fuck?
Y'all see this, right?
I'm right here in my
auntie's house. Right?
I ain't got no gun.
None of that.
Just chilling in my
auntie's house. All right.
Trying to have...
Trying to have a normal conversation
and they want
to kill me like they did KJ.
Jayden, stop!
You wanna kill me
right here in my auntie house?
- This is not helping.
- Answer the question.
Huh?
Answer the question, nigga.
You wanna kill me
like you did my cousin?
I'm trying
to fix things.
You see this picture
right here, bro?
Fourteen years old.
That's my blood, bro.
- I understand...
- You lived your life.
- I understand...
- You lived your life already,
- old ass nigga.
- This is not gonna help.
- This is my little cousin.
- This is not helping.
This is not helping.
I understand you're upset,
but I'm here
to help.
You ain't here
to do shit.
I'm not the enemy
here, okay?
Please, everybody,
let's just take a second.
Take a breath.
At least
step over there, sir.
- Can you step out?
- They're fine.
- They ain't fine.
- They're fine.
Get the fuck out of my aunties house, bro.
- We'll have the cameras here...
- Okay.
- ...in an hour.
- What the fuck.
Ain't making no fucking statements.
- Jayden.
- Fuck wrong with 'em.
- Jayden.
- We ain't doing none of that.
- Jayden!
- Bye!
Bye, Uncle Tom.
- Stop!
- Weird ass nigga.
- What we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What we want?
- Justice!
- When do we want it?
- Now!
As we all know, I...
I lost my son
over a year ago.
I had to bury
my only son.
Now, we did not get the
indictment that we hoped for.
And justice
was not served yet.
And all we want
is peace.
That's all we want.
So we need to stop
the rioting
and we need
to stop the violence.
Violence took
his ass from us.
You see this,
how it goes?
You understand?
A cop killed
another one of our babies.
People want answers.
People mad as hell.
They ready to tear shit up?
The first thing they do,
they put the mom on the TV.
That's the way they figure
if a child's mother
ain't ready to see shit
burned down,
then why should anyone else.
Shit is diabolical.
We don't want revenge.
We want justice.
They kill my son and they
go right back to work.
I can't do
shit about it.
I ain't shit, man.
It ain't
for nothing, bro.
Where are we
headed now?
Courthouse.
Tayana's filed a petition to
get the police chief dismissed.
Petition.
Sometimes those things work
if enough people
sign them, right?
Where are we now?
At a friend's house.
I gotta pick something up.
You got your license
on you, right?
Yeah, of course.
I need you to drive
for a little bit.
At least till
we get downtown.
Feeling a little off.
Maybe sit in the back
and get some fresh air.
- Yeah. Yeah, I could drive.
- Yeah? You don't mind?
No,
I could drive.
Kai, you can sit in the front
if you want.
Cool.
Really, Kai?
Lazy.
I'm gonna cut.
I need a battery change.
All right.
What time is it?
9:30.
- Call him.
- I already did.
Should we go knock?
Hold on.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit.
- Don't do this.
- Shut up.
What are you doing?
Linc, what are you doing?
Drive. Drive!
Okay, okay.
Hang in there.
I'm trying to,
but don't wanna get involved.
We should
get out and run.
Run? Are you
fucking kidding me?
They've got fucking
machine guns.
What are you doing?
Put that away!
- What are you doing?
- Put it away.
Stop.
911 what's your emergency?
What are you doing?
Huh?
You want to make
a documentary, right?
Well, now you're
making one.
Hear me when I say this because
I'm only gonna say it once.
Don't stop filming.
Put these on.
Let's go.
Let's go. Let's go.
Let's go. Let's go.
Hold your fire.
I swear, if I hear one
more shot...
Hear one more shot
I'm gonna shoot your captain,
Captain Morris,
in his head.
It's Eugene.
Stop shooting!
Captain.
What the fuck is going on?
Captain?
What do we do?
Stand down.
Our friends
will be outside soon.
They'll get it under control.
This is what
we're gonna do.
You wanna see his head,
I want to see your hands.
Hands. It's okay.
Hands.
Easy.
Hands up.
You remember me?
Put the fucking
phone away.
Put it down.
No, I didn't mean
to shoot your son.
You knew
he was unarmed.
You pointed your gun at him,
and you pulled the trigger.
No, I didn't...
No, I didn't mean
to kill him.
Linc.
You scared?
Are you afraid?
Thinking about
your family, huh?
About how you don't want to die?
About how you're too young?
Answer me, motherfucker.
This won't fix it.
Not this.
It'll make it worse...
For all of us.
Heavily armed men
have stormed
the San Vasillo
Police Department
taking hostage at least
a dozen police officers.
As you can see,
SWAT has arrived and are taking positions
as rampant confusion spreads
surrounding the identity
and motives
of the suspects involved.
Phone ringing like crazy
in there, brother.
Think they're trying to
get you on the line, you know?
Yeah.
I'm in charge.
Lincoln Jefferson.
Father of Kajani Jefferson,
fourteen year old black boy who was
killed by Officer Michael Randall
last year, July 3rd.
Everyone's fine.
I said
everyone's fine.
I want my son.
I want my son.
I want my son! I want my son!
I want my son! I want my son!
You're not hearing me.
You're asking me questions.
You're not hearing me.
You asked me what I want.
I want my son.
Okay?
So call me when
you can bring me that.
All right?
On our way up here
I saw a set of doors
I think they missed.
It might lead outside.
Kai, for the 10th time
they got machine guns.
You saw what they did
out there.
You've said that before.
What are we supposed to do? Just wait in
here until they start executing people?
I don't think
that's what he wants.
Well, we're hostages, and I don't think
he's planning on letting us go anytime.
Well, technically they're
hostages and we're the film crew?
Let's just do
what he says.
Film what he wants us to film.
You're backing up
to the cards?
I just finished
the other two right now.
All right. If you get the WiFi,
just dump it to the cloud. Okay?
Look, if it gets cut off,
we'll figure it out.
What is it with you
and this guy?
What? We're here.
Let's just get it.
- Hey.
- Where are you?
City Hall.
I know what
you're gonna say, but...
Are you okay?
Is anybody hurt? Are you okay?
I'm fine. Everybody's fine.
Okay. Well, it's all over
social media and the news.
They haven't mentioned
your name yet,
but it's just a matter
of time, baby.
If you just...
If you just give up now...
- I'm not.
- Listen.
You are all I have
that connects me to KJ.
Somebody's gotta pay for what
they did to him. All right?
What they did to our son...
- We have to do this peacefully.
- Why we gotta do it peacefully?
Huh?
Why are we the only people
in this country
that are expected to do things
without violence?
You know what white people do
when they're cross?
They kill people.
They don't march.
They don't do protests.
They don't ask for permission.
They don't ask no questions.
They react with force.
I served, I know.
I know how it goes
for everybody except us.
We're the only people expected
to take it on the cheek
and to take it on the other
cheek and walk it off.
Look at me.
You have to stay alive
for me, baby.
He is gone, baby,
Baby, he is gone.
What do you want me to do?
I want you to come back home.
Home, home.
Home, baby. With me.
Okay? We'll just
start over. We'll...
We'll figure it out. We can
work through this together.
Me and you, we can.
Okay?
So just promise me
that you'll make it
through this.
That you will make it
through this
and that you'll stay alive
no matter what, Lincoln.
Promise me that...
Tayana...
Lincoln, it's Steve,
the negotiator.
We shut down the signal
partially to your cell.
You're not gonna get a call
in or out moving forward.
It's not too late
to find a way out of it.
I know you're angry,
like you feel justice wasn't served.
You wanted to try.
You didn't get one.
We can't change that now.
That ship has sailed.
What we can do now
is move forward.
Round everyone up.
Get him right here in the main hall.
Alright, cops first.
We're gonna lock them
to them desks over there.
Those of you
who know why I'm here,
you know what I've lost.
And, you know because of flaws
in our system,
justice was not served.
So today,
today we make that right.
Today, Officer Michael Randall
will be tried
for the murder of my son,
Kajani Jefferson.
- What?
- Absolutely not.
Sit down!
Facts will be presented.
Evidence will be considered,
and a verdict
will be handed down.
Look, the court already spoke...
No, the court spoke for him,
didn't speak for my son.
All right.
How many civilians we got?
Counted six.
Which of you works
processing? Computers?
Cut him loose.
He's coming with us.
If I say your name,
come forward.
- What the fuck?
- Oh, hell no.
- What the fuck is this?
- Calm down.
Are you fucking insane?
You're gonna let these motherfuckers out?
Relax. They're
non-violent offenders.
And trust me, you're gonna
wanna be nice to 'em.
Ah, you lost your fucking mind.
- What do we got?
- We got a janitor.
We got two secretaries.
We got a clerk.
Parking attendant. What is it
that you do here, miss?
I was just here
to pay a parking ticket.
And a responsible young lady.
All right.
Officer Michael Randall,
you're being charged with murder.
Fuck you.
You know you can't charge me.
You want to guess
what the alternative is?
This is your jury.
Look at them.
These are the people that will
be the deciders of your fate.
They will listen to your story,
hear from others
who were involved in the
shooting, and they'll deliberate.
For some reason,
if they find a shadow of a doubt,
you walk out of here a free man,
and I turn myself in.
Yeah. A free man.
This is bullshit.
Captain!
No officers.
Not one officer on the jury.
You know, these aren't my peers.
Welcome to my world.
So I take it,
you're the prosecutor.
I'm the one to speak
for my son. Yeah.
So who defends him?
Sounds like
you already volunteered.
Okay. We'll play your game.
For now.
Okay, um, anyone ever served
on a jury?
I was a foreman.
Okay, good, well,
I need your help
walking the others
through the process. Okay?
Look, I know you didn't ask for
this, and I'm sorry to put it on you,
but the next several hours
will be very important
because at the end of that,
you're gonna have to vote,
and those votes will determine
a man's fate.
You for real, bro?
You gonna let all of us vote
on what happens to a cop?
Think you can be fair?
You know where I'm from, homie?
You know all the shit I've seen
the cops do?
All the shit they done
put me through?
I'll try.
That's good enough.
Anyone else?
What are you gonna do to him
if it's decided
he was in the wrong?
I don't know yet.
Do you all think you can
be fair and impartial,
regardless of the consequences?
The real question,
my brother,
is will you go all the way
with the consequences if we do?
I approached
the driver's side window
and asked the driver for
his license and registration.
He proceeded to pull the
documentation from his glove box
and handed me an insurance card
that I could see was expired.
He asked to look again
for another copy of the card.
But it being dark, I feared for the
safety of myself and my partner.
So I pulled him from the vehicle and attempted
to retrieve the active document myself.
When you previously told
this story and this time too,
you said you were given a card
that was expired,
which I saw gave the idea
to the general public
that the car was uninsured.
Unfortunately, sir, I don't control
what the general public thinks.
But you do remember me saying
repeatedly the car was insured?
Yes. But when...
But you did not give me an
opportunity to re-check the glove box?
No. And I've told you why.
After the shooting, did they
find out the car was insured?
- Yes, I believe they did.
- Was it?
It was.
In your own words, what happened
that night in July?
Start from the beginning.
We were driving south bound
on Virginia Avenue
just after shift change.
Officer Hollander and myself
saw the white Civic
cross the intersection
at an elevated speed.
Upon pulling over the vehicle,
Officer Hollander called in
to request backup.
After directing the car
to the side,
we approached the car
to find two black males.
- You and the deceased.
- Kajani.
That's his name.
Yeah.
- And then we...
- No, you approached the car
to find me and Kajani Jefferson.
Say it with his name.
We approached the car
to find you
and Kajani Jefferson seated in the
driver side and passenger respectively.
- Approached from where?
- The passenger's side.
- Close to Kajani?
- Yes.
Continue.
The driver then provided
an expired insurance card.
There was a small altercation around
whether the car was indeed insured.
It was at that time,
Hollander asked him to exit the car.
And then what?
Hollander proceeded
to search the driver.
When that's when Kajani reached
for something out of my sight.
- You pulled your gun?
- Yes.
You don't know what someone
could have underneath their seat.
Do you remember me
saying repeatedly
can I reached past
my 14-year-old son?
Yes, but a 14...
A 14-year-old could still
be grabbing for a gun.
But it wasn't a gun, was it?
- No, no. It was his phone.
- So you put your gun away?
No, we're taught
not to de-escalate.
No, once a gun is drawn,
it's drawn
- for safety.
- For whose safety?
That's what we're taught.
And then what happened?
He wouldn't stop recording.
And so I pulled him...
Kajani out of the car.
- Put it down!
- I have the right to film.
Exit the car and put your hands
in the air!
- KJ, put the phone down!
- I can film.
- Put the phone down!
- Exit the fucking car!
It's just a cellphone.
Easy. It's just a cellphone.
I need you to put
the phone away.
Put the phone away
and sit on the curb.
- He's unarmed. Okay?
- Just put your phone away.
Put your fucking phone away!
- Hey! Hey!
- Put your fucking phone away!
Get off him!
After the shots, what happened?
No, no, no!
I got in my car
and went to my house.
You went to your house?
That's protocol.
After a shooting,
you go home.
You wait for your superiors
to arrive.
Okay. Okay.
You said the suspect sped
through the intersection.
- Yes.
- You're still saying I was speeding?
- Did you clock him?
- No, we didn't clock him,
but you could tell he was at a
higher speed than what was posted.
If they weren't speeding,
would you have pulled them over?
No.
So if the driver had the proper
insurance card, what would have happened?
We would have let him go.
Kajani Jefferson might
be alive today.
What kind of bullshit
justification is that?
Seriously, since when
do jury members speak?
The only job that they have
is to keep their mouth shut.
Guess what,
you're not in control.
But there's a reason why courts
do things the way they do.
And how is that
working out for us?
Anyone who wants to speak,
feel free to speak.
Throughout this process,
everyone who wants a voice will have one.
Are you allowed to pull someone over for
speeding without knowing their actual speed?
- An officer can use judgment.
- What is that, the law?
Or do you just make it up
as you go?
No, we don't.
You see, nobody knows
what our job is like.
Twenty-four seven,
get the bad guys.
And we can all sit here
and pretend all we want that...
That all the Blacks that get
killed are killed by police,
and that they're all unarmed
and that they're all good people
and that they're all just,
you know...
I don't know, that the cops
are the only ones running around
trying to kill 'em,
but it's not true.
Couldn't be further
from the truth.
Everyone knows the statistics
on Black on Black crime.
How many Blacks are killed
in a year by other Blacks?
They don't put those numbers
in the news.
Do you have the statistics on
whites killing whites in a year?
Or Chinese killing Chinese?
Whites and the Chinese aren't the
ones cramming the prison system.
They're also not the ones
brought over here like property.
Hundreds of years ago.
And what does that have to do with
anything that we're talking about?
You don't find it interesting
that the people
brought over here in chains
are still in chains?
No. No, I don't. Okay?
The slavery thing
is a fucking cop out.
It happened. Get over it.
It ain't my job
to make sense of it.
It's my job... It's our job to
get the bad people off the street.
Black, white, whatever color.
Systematic violence and terror
aimed at one group of people.
And you just said, get over it.
Would you say that about the Holocaust?
Or women's rights?
- It's not the same.
- How is that different?
The things women have
been through in this country,
in the military, on the force.
Are you supporting his side?
I'm supporting my side.
I'm a cop, and I dare anyone in
here to question my loyalty to that.
But I'm also a woman,
a Latina woman at that,
so I know how things in the past
affect things happening now.
I can see that, you know,
for women
and definitely for the Holocaust.
But for them?
Why is it so hard for you
to empathize with Black people?
Because you guys make it hard.
That's more of that racist shit
right there.
No, that.
That's the fucking problem.
That's the problem in this country.
Anytime someone speaks the
truth, they're labeled a racist.
Let me tell you something.
The KKK is racist.
Nazis are racist.
So the only people that could be racist
are those that are in the KKK or the Nazis?
Anybody else? Anybody else by default
is cool is what you're saying.
I mean, like, fuck. Even right now,
I feel like I might say the wrong thing.
And I'm not racist. I know that.
I don't see color.
You color blind?
You know what I mean.
You said you're color blind.
I mean, I don't treat people differently
based on the color of their skin.
Any one of these guys
will tell you that.
I've had partners of all colors.
And, you know, frankly,
I haven't met many racist cops.
- We have a black captain, for Christ sakes.
- Meaning what?
Meaning that it's fucking
impossible for us to be racist.
Impossible. That's like saying
it's impossible to be sexist
'cause you're married
to a woman.
Programming is programming.
When a person buys
into a system or a culture
that teaches that racism,
that dominance,
that person, if they Black,
they white, Chinese...
- Oh, come on.
- ...whatever color they are,
they proudly reflect
that culture in every situation.
So, what you're saying
is that it's possible
for a black cop to be racist
towards another black,
to target him,
or shoot him based on a bias.
Hell, yeah,
he'll probably shoot him twice.
That's bullshit.
Come on, you guys, you...
Fuck, never mind.
No, Go on.
Say your piece.
I'm just saying,
you guys wanna cry race?
But a lot of the things that
black people have to deal with
is based on the way
black people act.
Look at hip hop music.
What is it? Uh...
"Drug the hoe, get the hoe,
shoot the bitch, do the..."
Whatever the fuck.
What do you expect?
And you think
I want my daughter
to hang around with people
that think that way?
I mean, let alone
come to my house. Hell, no!
But you let your kids
listen to it and buy it, right?
Those are the dollars
that keep it getting made.
White people buy the music that
blacks pay for with our lives.
The black kids think
they have to live that life
to make the music,
so your daughter can go buy it.
It's a cycle. It happens
again and again and again.
What are you saying?
This is our fault?
He's making a point.
No matter how bullshit
the music is,
y'all appropriate it,
fetishize it.
The demand rises,
the profits rise,
the sales rise.
Then it's just blacks and
Latinos exploited for the supply.
Man...
You all just reach
and reach.
Or maybe Blacks and Latinos
aren't all victims.
Maybe they are
the actual thugs
that they're saying they are
in their music.
Nah. You don't
know me, homie.
You don't know anything
about me, bro.
I'm crushing my people?
I'm crushing my people,
you fucking cartel wannabe!
Huh? You think you know me?
You think you know me?
You think you know
anything about me? Huh?
Fucking, your gang tattoos.
You think you're all
fucking hard, huh?
Killing, pushing drugs,
selling little girls.
And you think you're fucking
better than me?
No, dawg,
You don't know me, homie.
You don't know shit
about me, huh?
Fucking, you make it
impossible
for fucking Hispanic
or Latino people
to get ahead
in this fucking country,
'cause all they see is you,
and your fucking tattoos,
and your fucking
gangster shit.
Fuck you.
Kind of proves my point.
Two Hispanic guys arguing.
It's heated.
But is it racial? No.
Black guys, white guys,
Hispanic guys.
The thing that separates us
isn't race.
It's class, it's education.
You have kids?
Yeah, I got two girls.
They go to public school?
No. I work my ass off
so they don't have to.
Why? Why not public school?
What's wrong with that?
I mean, if all a person
has to do
is get an education,
then why does it matter
where they get it?
You know why.
Because private schools
are built like colleges.
And public schools,
where little brown
and black kids are,
they're built like prisons.
So, it's no surprise
when private school kids
go to college.
And public schools,
like where I grew up,
they don't even
graduate kids
on their way
to locking them up.
And that is a race problem,
Officer.
But that's America, right?
We don't fix the system,
just put a premium
on the way to get around it.
You think only black people
have to deal with that?
No. We just sit in the
worst position to beat it.
Which is why I sacrificed
everything I had
to put my son
in a better position.
Taking him out
of where he was,
and putting him into a place
where he could survive.
Well, guess what?
It wasn't enough.
I couldn't save him.
I couldn't save my boy,
not from him.
And why couldn't he
have just complied?
None of you ever comply.
'Cause we're fucking tired!
We're tired of being stalked
and intimidated
and getting our asses kicked
whenever you feel like it.
That attitude
is why that shit happens.
If you all just took
a second to think,
then maybe you'd avoid
all that shit.
If all of you
took a second to think,
maybe you wouldn't kill
so many of us.
I didn't mean
to kill your son.
- But you did.
- I did what I was trained to do.
There was a threat.
And I was... I was scared.
Which we're trained.
We're trained to go home. That's the...
I have a kid at home, too.
Whatever, I am a human being,
just like anybody else.
You know, every, every day,
I, I go to work,
and I want to go home
to my kids.
I want to see my son.
I had a split second
to decide
whether you were going
to attack my partner
or your kid
was gonna reach for his gun.
I didn't wanna get shot.
I wanted to go home.
We wanted to go home, too.
This is my son.
This is my little boy.
This is what was
taken from me.
He didn't ask to be born.
He didn't ask to be black.
And he didn't ask
to get shot.
Look at him. Look at him!
I'm never gonna be able
to hug my son again.
Never gonna see him get
married or have children.
Officer Randall
took that from me.
The world
took that from me.
I just want justice.
That's all I want.
I just want justice.
He took it from me.
But you,
you can give it back.
Why can't you
just accept responsibility,
that you put your son
in that situation
by breaking the law
and going over
the posted speed limit.
What speed were we going?
The speed.
What speed were we going?
You pulled us over 'cause
we were speeding, right?
What speed were we going
when you pulled us over?
It was over a year ago.
You want me to remind...
We'll get the report.
Get the report, Derwood.
It's not in the report.
- Why not?
- Because I didn't record it.
I registered it
based on what I remember.
Okay, what did you see?
What was the speed?
I mean, it's residential,
so it's 25 miles-per-hour, right?
- I don't know.
- You don't know?
You were there, right?
Same car, same time.
What was the speed?
What? 45, 50?
Forty-five, 50,
seems right.
Yeah. You sure?
Not exactly, no.
I don't remember.
Well, I do remember.
I do remember,
'cause I was there, too.
I've played it over
a thousand times in my mind,
trying to think about
all the reasons
why this thing went wrong.
We were crossing Virginia
at Lombardi,
residential area.
Twenty-five miles-
per-hour posted.
Which is why 45
would have seemed very...
Not when there's
speed bumps 20 feet apart
on each side
of the intersection.
We were not speeding up,
were we, Officer Randall?
We were slowing down.
Just long enough
for you to see two black men
driving through that
prestigious neighborhood.
Race has
nothing to do with it.
Are you standing by your
story that we were speeding?
- It's an officer's...
- Officer Randall!
Are you standing by your story
that we were speeding?
What do you expect?
You were driving
in that neighborhood
in that crappy car,
which is suspicious.
You went there
after 12:00 midnight.
Who's driving around in that
neighborhood after midnight?
People are coming home, yes.
But most of the people
driving around
in that situation
are bad people,
looking to do bad things.
- So you profiled us.
- You are damn right I did.
Like, you get pissed off
if your car gets
broken into, right?
You get pissed off if your
house gets burglarized.
But how are we supposed
to find those bad people
if we're not
pulling people over?
The only way
to find these bad people
is by pulling them over.
We pull them over, we see
burglary tools, stolen mail.
Worse, nine times
out of ten,
see, in that situation,
something's up.
Do you want to be...
Do you want to be safe?
You want to be kept safe?
We keep you safe.
That's the cost.
And there it is.
So, if the officers didn't
profile that man and his son...
That man and his son
make it home at night.
And Kajani Jefferson
might be alive today.
No, no... Get down, get down!
Get down.
Come on, bitch.
You're the guy that took me in,
following me
with your fake ass charge.
Fuck you, you gangster
fucking piece of shit!
Fuck you, bitch.
You fucking talk shit
and you get a beating!
Come on.
Come on, fight me.
Settle down.
Settle down, man.
Get him back
to his cell.
All right,
let me help you up.
Yeah, okay.
Let me help, come on.
No, wait!
- Come on, now.
- Fuck!
Get the fuck off me!
Get off me!
Linc.
Oh, shit.
- Stay down.
- Shit.
You all right?
Hey, hey, hey.
Sit down.
Come over here, sit down.
You all right?
Ugh, better than
all right, nephew.
Yeah, it went through.
- We gotta get him outta here.
- Yeah.
No, it's not gonna happen.
All I gotta do
is call.
Look, Uncle, listen to me.
If it hit an artery or
something, we can't stop it.
Don't matter
what happen to me.
I'm old. I've been around
a long time.
And because of you,
I get to live.
So, hell no,
I ain't going nowhere.
- You understand?
- Yes, sir.
Go on, get back to it.
I got him, Linc.
I got him.
Lincoln.
You need to end this.
Nothing good
is gonna come
out of what
you're doing here.
You've imprisoned cops,
and allowed them
to be attacked by inmates.
You've taken
civilians hostage.
You've got
an injured comrade,
and you've got World War III
outside.
On top of all that,
your experiment is done.
Your 12th juror is gone...
So turn it in,
so no one else gets hurt.
I think he's right.
Jordin. You're up.
- What?
- You're the 12th Juror. Come on.
- No, Linc. I can't...
- I'm not asking.
He's biased.
I'm not biased.
This is a bad move, Linc.
We're moving
this thing forward.
Vote your conscience.
Take as much time
as you need.
Are you okay?
I don't wanna be
in the middle of this.
None of us do.
But we're here now,
and it's like he said.
Whatever happens,
just vote your conscience.
Hey, kid...
Just remember
what's at stake here.
So, guilty.
And not guilty.
Well, it's all or nothing.
Maybe we don't vote.
Will you be the one to go out there
and tell him we're gonna refuse.
We have to treat this
like we would if we were outside.
We rehash the facts,
determine if he broke the law.
He broke the law
when he profiled.
That doesn't mean
he planned to kill that kid.
It doesn't have to,
by his own words,
it's plain and simple,
He should have never
been in that position.
It's not plain.
It's not simple.
It's a police officer's life,
his family, his reputation.
Reputation.
Are you serious right now?
Talking about
fucking reputation?
It's funny how you wanna
talk about reputation now.
They don't talk
about reputation
when they sending Blacks
and Latinos away for life.
All right, we need
to stay productive, here.
You just need
to stay on point, okay?
And let's be clear,
we're not sentencing him.
We're just determining guilt.
Now, why do you think
he is not guilty?
Pulling someone over
is the most dangerous action
a cop does on a daily basis.
That's just dangerous.
So you'll
be blind to the fact
that it became dangerous
because he thought he was black?
Are we here to
determine if the cop broke the law?
We're here
to find the truth, homeboy.
We're here to find
the truth.
You good?
Yeah, I'm all right.
You?
I'm cool.
Well, this needs
closure, man.
We'll get it.
One way or another.
I still don't know why they
let him leave the crime scene.
Doesn't everyone else have to
make a statement right away?
- Right?
- He was getting the story straight.
Or maybe
just to get him away
to help him calm down.
Killing a kid
must be traumatizing.
But seeing your child killed
has to be traumatic, too.
You have thoughts, Jordin?
I mean, I'm not sure
we're gonna get anywhere
if everyone
doesn't contribute
and add something here.
I grew up middle class.
I actually have an uncle
who was a cop,
and, I believe, a good man.
So, um...
I've been
a little conflicted.
It's hard for me to believe
that all cops are bad.
Do I think that police have
a dangerous job? Of course.
Do I think
that Officer Randall
woke up that morning
thinking about killing
someone's kid? No.
Can I say,
without a shadow of a doubt,
that race was
the driving force around
Kajani Jefferson
being killed?
I don't know.
I look around this precinct
and I see stickers
and banners that say,
"Back the blue"
and "Support our police."
Things left over from the
backlash of Kajani getting killed.
But I haven't seen
anything acknowledging
that a kid lost his life.
A citizen who was expected
to be a patriot.
How can anyone
who has this...
This history of pain
and poverty
and subjugation
be expected to be
a patriot, proud to be
an American,
only to be shot down because
of their American skin?
And how could anyone patriotic
ignore these killings
and yet pride themselves on
being a part of a great nation?
Great nations aren't great
because they oppress,
but because they liberate,
not because they kill,
but because they heal.
Police and soldiers
should be the
gatekeepers of that truth
and should protect it
with their lives.
Fuck, man,
this fucking sucks.
This really actually
fucking sucks.
It sucks. People are dying.
Kids are dying.
I don't wanna hear another
story of a black kid
killed by a cop.
Yeah, I don't wanna
hear how
the cop did the right thing
no matter the circumstances,
and I don't wanna have to
see another mother and father
just grieving and powerless
and pushed to the point with...
Where they're willing
to give their own lives.
So if it means us
doing the right thing
will make this man
have to suffer.
If it means us having
to hold him accountable
so that police
everywhere would just
take a beat
before they
make his mistake...
then so be it.
They're ready, nephew.
Officer Michael Randall
in the murder
of Kajani Jefferson,
we, the jury, find you...
guilty.
What does that mean?
What does that mean?
- What did you do, huh?
- Hey, hey!
What did you do?
- Don't, don't do this.
- What are you doing?
On his knees.
Is this yours?
Yes.
Call your wife and kid.
Call them
on video.
My, God. Thank God.
- Yeah, baby.
- Honey.
Are you okay? You coming out?
Is everything okay?
No, I don't think
I'm coming out.
What's going on, baby?
What's going on?
I've got someone here
who wants to talk to you.
He's taking
the phone from me.
Dad.
Hey, buddy.
Are you okay?
I'm good.
Your picture's on TV.
When are you
coming home?
You know I...
I love you, kid.
All right. You gotta...
You take care of your mom.
Mike, Mike, you're scaring him.
What's going on?
I'm not gonna
make it out of it.
What? What are you talking about?
No, no, no, no, no.
Don't talk like that.
You know,
I made a mistake,
and, uh...
No, no, no, no, no.
Mike, listen to me.
I'm coming, okay?
In two seconds, right now.
I... I love you.
I'm gonna get Jason.
I'm gonna come to you right now.
- I love you so much.
- I'm gonna come to you right now.
Look...
That indescribable feeling
I've been carrying the
last year and a half.
Now you know.
I'm sorry.
I'm so sorry.
That's it?
Yup.
I did what I came to do.
I'll take it all the way
if they let me
serve whatever time
they throw at me.
Well, at least no cops died.
That's the miracle, right?
That was the plan.
How did you know
they would convict?
I didn't.
So all of this
was to make the cops see?
No.
Just to make the world see.
That's why you're here.
I'll see you
on the other side.
You know for the first
time in my life, I feel like
I'm the one
questioning everything.
You know, if it's okay,
I'd like to
walk out with you.
Not as an enemy.
You might want to put that down?
This is Officer Mike Randall.
I'm walking out with Lincoln Jefferson.
He's unarmed.
I repeat, he's unarmed!
Linc! Linc, no!
No! No!
Linc, no! Get up! No!
Lincoln!
And we have
breaking news tonight.
Authorities have
confirmed
that ex-marine
Lincoln Jefferson
was killed just
minutes ago
when he attempted to exit the
downtown police department
while holding
several hostages.
...unconfirmed reports
on social media
that Lincoln Jefferson
may have had contact
with Islamic extremists.
Information that many say
further suggests
a suicide mission.
He was clearly suffering
from some sort
of mental illness.
It's just so sad.
We do have to
switch gears now
and toss it over
to Steve, with sports.
Basketball season
is finally upon us,
and, hey, we have plenty of
early season tournament action
about the kickoff
here in November.
But before we get
to any of that,
we gotta talk
about my man
Mon'Quarion Washington.
M&M, the six foot nine, 225 pound
senior, is a monster on the court.
- How you doing tonight?
- Doing well, Officer.
Can I see your
driver's license,
registration
and insurance, please?
Of course. My license
is right here in my wallet.
I need to reach past my
14 year-old son
to get my registration
insurance from the glove box.
- Is that all right?
- Sure.
Okay.
One second, my son.
You live in the area?
No, sir.
Where you
coming from?
Picking up my son
from a friend's house.
Here you go.
You're on parole
or have any warrants
- I should know about?
- No, sir.
Are you aware your insurance
has expired?
Uh, it must be
an old copy...
The car definitely
has insurance.
Uh, I might
have a new copy...
Hey, keep your hands
where I can see them, sir.
Relax. Right here, sir.
Right here.
It's okay. It's all right.
It's all right.
Oh, thank you.
Can I have you step out
of the vehicle?
Uh, sure.
Undo my seatbelt.
It's okay.
It's all right.
It's all right, Son.
- Hands up.
- Hey, hey, hey, hey.
Wait, wait, wait.
- Sir, sir, sir he's a kid.
- Put your hands on the dashboard
right now. Drop the whatever
you have in your hand.
- Put the phone down.
- It's my phone.
- It's my phone.
- Sir, it's a phone.
It's a cell phone,
it's just a cell phone.
Put the phone down.
Exit the car and put
your hands in the air.
Officer, please.
He's just a kid.
- I can talk to him.
- Please, he's just a kid.
Exit the car
with your hands in the air.
He's gonna get out.
Okay, get out of the car son.
Easy, easy.
- It's just a phone.
- I need you to put the phone away.
Put the phone away
and sit on the curb.
He's unarmed, okay.
He's just...
- Sir, just let us do our job.
- Put the phone away and sit on the curb.
- Put the fucking phone away.
- Put it down!
Put the fucking phone away!
May I help you?
Linc, I'm Jordin King.
We talked a few times
on the phone.
The student filmmaker.
We spoke about me possibly
doing some interviews with you
around what happened
to your son.
Come on in.
Come on.
Come on.
A mark.
B mark.
Just put
the belt pack on.
Who will all this be seen by?
My class mostly.
Professors, staff.
If people respond to it,
we'll try and get it
into some festivals.
Festivals?
A festival is like
a group of public screenings.
Only, it's curated.
People get dressed up,
they go see it,
and when it's over,
everyone looks around
for reactions.
If the right people
hate it, it dies,
and if the right
people love it,
we get a chance
to bring it to the world.
So this could be seen
by people over the world.
It's possible.
What's that?
That's B cam.
Just another angle,
something behind the scenes.
So I've got
some questions,
kind of all over the place.
Some easy stuff,
some hard.
Anything you don't
feel like answering,
you don't have to.
Can you say your name
into the camera?
Um, Lincoln Jefferson.
I go by Linc.
By now, a lot of people
know about KJ
and what happened
to him.
But few people know
who KJ was
or what he was like.
In one word or a sentence even,
how would you
describe him?
You know, um,
I can show you
better than
I can tell you.
What happens when old people
act like they're young people?
Is that you?
Kind of.
I'm not trying to spend
Christmas in an emergency room.
Okay, y'all know me
and how much I can do.
Oh!
It was all the time,
every day he was um...
He was just funny.
Um, smart,
uh, just an all around
good kid, you know?
Mm-hmm.
- Yeah.
Can you tell me what happened
on July 3rd of last year?
- Put it away!
- Please, listen...
- All right.
- Thank you so much.
You're welcome.
Oh, no, I'm good.
Thank you.
Oh, no,
I'm good. Thank you.
Okay.
You just
put this right here.
All right.
And you can put
the belt pack on yourself.
Oh. Okay. Thanks.
Linc said you helped raise KJ
when he was a baby.
Yeah, I did.
I helped raise
all my grandkids.
You know,
Linc and Tayana
well, they kind of
started out young,
like, you know,
a lot of people do,
but you just do
what you can to help.
You know,
he went to the service.
Iraq. Kept us safe.
Did what he had to do
and for him to come back
and for them to treat him
like they do...
- Mom.
- No. Now, you know that ain't right.
Now he did good
by KJ.
He had him, going to
one of those top schools, too.
On the pass.
A pass?
A pass is like a permit.
Yeah 'cause I worked
in the district.
That was how I was able
to get him into school.
Yeah, that KJ,
he was a good boy.
I mean, he started, you know,
acting out a little
when Tayana and Linc split.
But, I mean, that's normal
for boys at age 13.
That's when
you lose them.
But when he moved in
with Linc, you know,
it settled him down.
A boy needs
a man in his life.
I mean, he ought
to have one.
I mean, how else
is he supposed to know
what a man
is supposed to act like
or if he's
one himself?
That boy
was all that Linc had
and they took him away.
For nothing.
I mean, if, if it would
have happened,
you know, if he lived
in this neighborhood,
it would have made
more sense.
Make more sense how?
These young boys
get beat down
by the cops or worse
all the time.
More instances of police
brutality in poor communities?
No, baby. More instances
of police brutality
in Black communities.
Seriously?
Come on, I get these
priceless moments.
- Why?
- First day of school, new school.
Tell me how it went.
It was... It was crazy.
Okay, crazy good
or crazy bad?
Crazy weird.
Lockers outside,
they play rap during lunch,
which is hilarious.
Mmm-hmm.
Gucci Mane on the loudspeakers.
Gucci!
White people everywhere,
heads bobbin' off-beat.
It was like
a Key and Peele skit.
But everybody's cool.
A lot of them
extra cool.
Probably just want to say
they're hanging out
with the only black kid
in school.
But no drama.
They have like these mini
restaurants in the school.
And you can have just about
anything you want.
And there wasn't even
one fight all day.
How do you feel you two
splitting up affected him?
It's hard to tell,
but I'm sure it did.
You know, Tayana, she's...
She was such
a great mother.
I mean,
great mother
and we wanted
to make it work.
But once I got back
from the military,
everything changed.
You know, I had some... Some things
I wanted to do when I got back.
Some dreams.
And people don't really talk
about the thing you face
when you come home.
Financial hardships,
dealing with unemployment,
problems trying to get help
from the VA.
You know, all that stuff
can really hurt your pride.
Hmm, it just...
It really took a toll on us.
Hmm.
Where did you serve?
Two tours in Iraq.
Twenty one months,
all in all.
Wow. What did you do?
Infantry rifleman.
What was that like?
It was war.
I see he was into Malcolm.
Yeah, he was definitely
into Malcolm.
Yeah, he asked
a lot of questions,
and I tried to teach him
a lot about
who he was knowing his history,
his identity,
knowing his rights.
He was into it.
I mean, he even got the school
to teach on the Black Panthers
during Black History Month.
Which was a really
proud moment.
Did you ever talk
to him about the police?
So you're saying
by law,
you can resist the cops,
like you can fight them back?
Yeah. If you
didn't do nothing.
Who said that?
The US Supreme Court.
"One has an unalienable right
to protect his life,
"liberty or property
from unlawful attack or harm.
"Therefore, it's not
an offense to liberate
"one from the unlawful
custody of an officer."
So that's really what they're
teaching with the white kids?
Hey, it sounds
like bullshit to me.
That's 'cause you're
stuck in the school
where they
don't teach you shit.
If the cop don't conform
to the law of the land,
I can resist
and protect myself.
It's just the law.
What's up?
Hey, just studying for the
government test tomorrow.
Studying, huh?
- What's up Mr. Linc.
- What up, Jonah?
What were you just saying,
just now?
Telling Jonah
what we learned in class.
He don't believe it.
The law says
you can defend yourself
from an unlawful attack
from anybody
even the police, right?
- Well...
- He's crazy, right, Mr. Linc?
- I mean, he's technically right.
- Technically?
- Well, yes, in theory...
- But the law is the law.
"A citizen illegally arrested
"cannot initiate
the use of force,
"and neither do words alone
justify an assault."
- Hey, KJ...
- "However, when the officer
"initiates the assault
by physical contact..."
- All right listen to me.
- "...which is the case..."
- What I'm trying to tell you...
- "There's an unlawful..."
- There is a difference...
- "...arrest, there, a citizen
"has a right to protect his
liberty, to the extent
- "of killing the officer..."
- Look... Stop, all right? Stop!
Don't say those words.
All right.
Don't even think them.
Hey, um, I'll call
you back later.
No, no, no. Stay on, Jonah.
You need to hear this too.
Look, citizens
have rights, yes.
There are all kinds of laws and
documents and cases that say so.
But the citizens
they're talking about
don't always look like us.
Especially not to the police.
- But the Supreme Court...
- I understand that.
What you need to understand
is those laws
weren't written
with us in mind.
And anyone that tells you
differently, is either white
or just lucky they haven't had
to put it to the test yet.
So I'm just supposed to forget
everything you ever told me
about self-respect and dignity
and standing up
for what I believe in?
Yes, yes. If it means you're coming
home to me safely, absolutely.
I know it doesn't
make sense to you now,
but one day
when you have kids
it'll be crystal clear,
trust me.
Look at me.
When you're dealing
with the police
you don't think of laws.
You don't think of rights.
None of that.
You just do whatever they say, their way.
All right?
That way you will live.
Could live
to make it home to me.
You understand?
What's up, guys?
Wow.
- Nice, huh?
- Yeah.
Nadir.
This is what
you get.
It was well worth it, you know.
Anyone would want
their kids to go here.
No one dreams
of coming out of the service
and becoming a custodian,
but I knew I had to do something to
get him out of the situation he was in.
Wanted to take advantage
of the opportunities here
and when I asked, you know,
how to get him in,
first thing they said is
"You gotta live here,
"or have a job here.".
The houses start
at a million dollars,
so I knew that wasn't
gonna happen.
So I applied.
Why do you think
you stayed after, um...
After a year and a half?
- Why I stayed?
- Yeah.
I don't know. Routine.
Get that bucket.
How are you
and Linc related?
We're brothers,
not blood brothers.
We are blood brother,
it's not biological, as I put it.
How'd you meet?
Overseas. Same squad,
same fire team.
Lincoln and I actually
grew up near each other.
Just never met.
It's something else.
But, you know,
same old story.
Came up hard,
was no kind of student.
You mess up enough times
it's only a matter of time
before you get locked up.
How old are you?
I'm 21.
When I was a little bit
younger than you,
I went into the Marines.
You served
in the Middle East together.
- We did.
- Can you elaborate?
Nah.
It's kind of crazy
how hard
it is to get people
to talk about it.
Yeah, you have to live it
to understand why.
You were
in the hospital.
Yeah, chemo.
Last treatment
was this morning.
Wow. Congrats, man.
I didn't say I beat it.
I said it was the
last treatment.
First and last.
I looked like shit.
I feel like shit.
I ain't doing that again.
Doctors say it metastasized.
- Meaning...
- I-I know what it means.
Hmm.
So anyway, yeah, I figured
why lose my hair, you know?
If I lose weight,
dying before it kills me...
Nah, I ain't got long.
I'll just ride it out.
I'm sorry.
It is what it is.
Got it right here.
This is it.
It is what it is.
Don't you ever forget that.
It is what it is.
All right, all right.
Let's go.
Oh, you're good, bro.
We'll be back.
Linc, can you give a little
background on what's happening?
Into the camera?
Yeah, we're headed
to the courthouse
for the grand jury decision
and, uh,
we are optimistic
and we hope
it goes our way.
- Good?
- Good.
All right. All right,
let's go, let's go.
Let's head out.
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What do we want?
- Justice.
We're here live outside
the LA County courthouse.
Where, as you can see
behind me,
both protesters and police
supporters are waiting
to see if Officer Mike Randall
will be indicted
on charges stemming
from last year's shooting
of 14-year old
Kajani Jefferson.
Justice for Kajani!
Justice for Kajani!
Justice for Kajani!
- Justice for Kajani.
- Back the blue.
- Justice for Kajani!
- Back the blue!
Justice for Kajan!
Justice for Kajani!
After their exhaustive
review of the evidence,
the grand jury deliberated
over two days,
making their
final decision.
They determined that no
probable cause exists
to file any charges
against Officer Randall.
They returned a no true bill
on each of the five claims.
- The physical...
- Officer Randall will be returning to service
effective immediately according to
standard protocol in such cases.
Excuse me, Officer.
Listen, I need to talk to you,
I just need to know why.
Can you just tell me why?
Please don't...
So you're
gonna shoot me?
Is that what you're
gonna do shoot me, right?
Because I have
a gun, right?
Because I'm a threat, right?
You coward!
You hide behind that badge.
You're a coward!
I lost my baby.
Ah, man.
It's okay.
It's gonna be
all right.
You're all right.
You're all right.
Okay?
You'll be all right.
The announcement
of a grand jury's decision
not to indict San Vacilo
police officer Mike Randall
in the shooting death of
unarmed teen Kajani Jefferson
was met with chaos
on Tuesday night.
Miss Jefferson,
I need your help.
Uh, the city
need your help.
Make a statement
on camera.
Tell the community
that violence is not the way.
Man, do you hear yourself?
Talking all that
no violence bullshit.
Y'all niggas should have
thought about that shit
before y'all killed
my cousin, man.
Can you please
turn that off?
Can you please
get the fuck out!
Jayden, stop!
Look, I can
only imagine
- how you're feeling right now...
- Do you have kids?
- Yes, ma'am.
- Mmm.
- Two little girls.
- Are they breathing?
Hmm?
You couldn't possibly
imagine how I feel.
You have no idea
how I feel.
- You're right.
- I know.
- Yes, ma'am, you're right.
- Mmm-hmm.
And I'm truly
sorry for your loss,
but we can't change the past.
Man, fuck you.
What the fuck! Now you want
to talk all this peace shit?
So no one else
gets hurt?
Where the fuck was all that
when y'all killed KJ, huh?
- Fuck, nigga.
- Look, young man,
- I'm gonna need you to calm down.
- Man, I don't give a fuck.
- Don't "young man" me. None of that shit!
- Right now.
I don't give a fuck.
- You work in public service, motherfucker.
- Calm down!
What the fuck?
Y'all see this, right?
I'm right here in my
auntie's house. Right?
I ain't got no gun.
None of that.
Just chilling in my
auntie's house. All right.
Trying to have...
Trying to have a normal conversation
and they want
to kill me like they did KJ.
Jayden, stop!
You wanna kill me
right here in my auntie house?
- This is not helping.
- Answer the question.
Huh?
Answer the question, nigga.
You wanna kill me
like you did my cousin?
I'm trying
to fix things.
You see this picture
right here, bro?
Fourteen years old.
That's my blood, bro.
- I understand...
- You lived your life.
- I understand...
- You lived your life already,
- old ass nigga.
- This is not gonna help.
- This is my little cousin.
- This is not helping.
This is not helping.
I understand you're upset,
but I'm here
to help.
You ain't here
to do shit.
I'm not the enemy
here, okay?
Please, everybody,
let's just take a second.
Take a breath.
At least
step over there, sir.
- Can you step out?
- They're fine.
- They ain't fine.
- They're fine.
Get the fuck out of my aunties house, bro.
- We'll have the cameras here...
- Okay.
- ...in an hour.
- What the fuck.
Ain't making no fucking statements.
- Jayden.
- Fuck wrong with 'em.
- Jayden.
- We ain't doing none of that.
- Jayden!
- Bye!
Bye, Uncle Tom.
- Stop!
- Weird ass nigga.
- What we want?
- Justice.
- When do we want it?
- Now!
- What we want?
- Justice!
- When do we want it?
- Now!
As we all know, I...
I lost my son
over a year ago.
I had to bury
my only son.
Now, we did not get the
indictment that we hoped for.
And justice
was not served yet.
And all we want
is peace.
That's all we want.
So we need to stop
the rioting
and we need
to stop the violence.
Violence took
his ass from us.
You see this,
how it goes?
You understand?
A cop killed
another one of our babies.
People want answers.
People mad as hell.
They ready to tear shit up?
The first thing they do,
they put the mom on the TV.
That's the way they figure
if a child's mother
ain't ready to see shit
burned down,
then why should anyone else.
Shit is diabolical.
We don't want revenge.
We want justice.
They kill my son and they
go right back to work.
I can't do
shit about it.
I ain't shit, man.
It ain't
for nothing, bro.
Where are we
headed now?
Courthouse.
Tayana's filed a petition to
get the police chief dismissed.
Petition.
Sometimes those things work
if enough people
sign them, right?
Where are we now?
At a friend's house.
I gotta pick something up.
You got your license
on you, right?
Yeah, of course.
I need you to drive
for a little bit.
At least till
we get downtown.
Feeling a little off.
Maybe sit in the back
and get some fresh air.
- Yeah. Yeah, I could drive.
- Yeah? You don't mind?
No,
I could drive.
Kai, you can sit in the front
if you want.
Cool.
Really, Kai?
Lazy.
I'm gonna cut.
I need a battery change.
All right.
What time is it?
9:30.
- Call him.
- I already did.
Should we go knock?
Hold on.
Oh, shit.
Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit.
- Don't do this.
- Shut up.
What are you doing?
Linc, what are you doing?
Drive. Drive!
Okay, okay.
Hang in there.
I'm trying to,
but don't wanna get involved.
We should
get out and run.
Run? Are you
fucking kidding me?
They've got fucking
machine guns.
What are you doing?
Put that away!
- What are you doing?
- Put it away.
Stop.
911 what's your emergency?
What are you doing?
Huh?
You want to make
a documentary, right?
Well, now you're
making one.
Hear me when I say this because
I'm only gonna say it once.
Don't stop filming.
Put these on.
Let's go.
Let's go. Let's go.
Let's go. Let's go.
Hold your fire.
I swear, if I hear one
more shot...
Hear one more shot
I'm gonna shoot your captain,
Captain Morris,
in his head.
It's Eugene.
Stop shooting!
Captain.
What the fuck is going on?
Captain?
What do we do?
Stand down.
Our friends
will be outside soon.
They'll get it under control.
This is what
we're gonna do.
You wanna see his head,
I want to see your hands.
Hands. It's okay.
Hands.
Easy.
Hands up.
You remember me?
Put the fucking
phone away.
Put it down.
No, I didn't mean
to shoot your son.
You knew
he was unarmed.
You pointed your gun at him,
and you pulled the trigger.
No, I didn't...
No, I didn't mean
to kill him.
Linc.
You scared?
Are you afraid?
Thinking about
your family, huh?
About how you don't want to die?
About how you're too young?
Answer me, motherfucker.
This won't fix it.
Not this.
It'll make it worse...
For all of us.
Heavily armed men
have stormed
the San Vasillo
Police Department
taking hostage at least
a dozen police officers.
As you can see,
SWAT has arrived and are taking positions
as rampant confusion spreads
surrounding the identity
and motives
of the suspects involved.
Phone ringing like crazy
in there, brother.
Think they're trying to
get you on the line, you know?
Yeah.
I'm in charge.
Lincoln Jefferson.
Father of Kajani Jefferson,
fourteen year old black boy who was
killed by Officer Michael Randall
last year, July 3rd.
Everyone's fine.
I said
everyone's fine.
I want my son.
I want my son.
I want my son! I want my son!
I want my son! I want my son!
You're not hearing me.
You're asking me questions.
You're not hearing me.
You asked me what I want.
I want my son.
Okay?
So call me when
you can bring me that.
All right?
On our way up here
I saw a set of doors
I think they missed.
It might lead outside.
Kai, for the 10th time
they got machine guns.
You saw what they did
out there.
You've said that before.
What are we supposed to do? Just wait in
here until they start executing people?
I don't think
that's what he wants.
Well, we're hostages, and I don't think
he's planning on letting us go anytime.
Well, technically they're
hostages and we're the film crew?
Let's just do
what he says.
Film what he wants us to film.
You're backing up
to the cards?
I just finished
the other two right now.
All right. If you get the WiFi,
just dump it to the cloud. Okay?
Look, if it gets cut off,
we'll figure it out.
What is it with you
and this guy?
What? We're here.
Let's just get it.
- Hey.
- Where are you?
City Hall.
I know what
you're gonna say, but...
Are you okay?
Is anybody hurt? Are you okay?
I'm fine. Everybody's fine.
Okay. Well, it's all over
social media and the news.
They haven't mentioned
your name yet,
but it's just a matter
of time, baby.
If you just...
If you just give up now...
- I'm not.
- Listen.
You are all I have
that connects me to KJ.
Somebody's gotta pay for what
they did to him. All right?
What they did to our son...
- We have to do this peacefully.
- Why we gotta do it peacefully?
Huh?
Why are we the only people
in this country
that are expected to do things
without violence?
You know what white people do
when they're cross?
They kill people.
They don't march.
They don't do protests.
They don't ask for permission.
They don't ask no questions.
They react with force.
I served, I know.
I know how it goes
for everybody except us.
We're the only people expected
to take it on the cheek
and to take it on the other
cheek and walk it off.
Look at me.
You have to stay alive
for me, baby.
He is gone, baby,
Baby, he is gone.
What do you want me to do?
I want you to come back home.
Home, home.
Home, baby. With me.
Okay? We'll just
start over. We'll...
We'll figure it out. We can
work through this together.
Me and you, we can.
Okay?
So just promise me
that you'll make it
through this.
That you will make it
through this
and that you'll stay alive
no matter what, Lincoln.
Promise me that...
Tayana...
Lincoln, it's Steve,
the negotiator.
We shut down the signal
partially to your cell.
You're not gonna get a call
in or out moving forward.
It's not too late
to find a way out of it.
I know you're angry,
like you feel justice wasn't served.
You wanted to try.
You didn't get one.
We can't change that now.
That ship has sailed.
What we can do now
is move forward.
Round everyone up.
Get him right here in the main hall.
Alright, cops first.
We're gonna lock them
to them desks over there.
Those of you
who know why I'm here,
you know what I've lost.
And, you know because of flaws
in our system,
justice was not served.
So today,
today we make that right.
Today, Officer Michael Randall
will be tried
for the murder of my son,
Kajani Jefferson.
- What?
- Absolutely not.
Sit down!
Facts will be presented.
Evidence will be considered,
and a verdict
will be handed down.
Look, the court already spoke...
No, the court spoke for him,
didn't speak for my son.
All right.
How many civilians we got?
Counted six.
Which of you works
processing? Computers?
Cut him loose.
He's coming with us.
If I say your name,
come forward.
- What the fuck?
- Oh, hell no.
- What the fuck is this?
- Calm down.
Are you fucking insane?
You're gonna let these motherfuckers out?
Relax. They're
non-violent offenders.
And trust me, you're gonna
wanna be nice to 'em.
Ah, you lost your fucking mind.
- What do we got?
- We got a janitor.
We got two secretaries.
We got a clerk.
Parking attendant. What is it
that you do here, miss?
I was just here
to pay a parking ticket.
And a responsible young lady.
All right.
Officer Michael Randall,
you're being charged with murder.
Fuck you.
You know you can't charge me.
You want to guess
what the alternative is?
This is your jury.
Look at them.
These are the people that will
be the deciders of your fate.
They will listen to your story,
hear from others
who were involved in the
shooting, and they'll deliberate.
For some reason,
if they find a shadow of a doubt,
you walk out of here a free man,
and I turn myself in.
Yeah. A free man.
This is bullshit.
Captain!
No officers.
Not one officer on the jury.
You know, these aren't my peers.
Welcome to my world.
So I take it,
you're the prosecutor.
I'm the one to speak
for my son. Yeah.
So who defends him?
Sounds like
you already volunteered.
Okay. We'll play your game.
For now.
Okay, um, anyone ever served
on a jury?
I was a foreman.
Okay, good, well,
I need your help
walking the others
through the process. Okay?
Look, I know you didn't ask for
this, and I'm sorry to put it on you,
but the next several hours
will be very important
because at the end of that,
you're gonna have to vote,
and those votes will determine
a man's fate.
You for real, bro?
You gonna let all of us vote
on what happens to a cop?
Think you can be fair?
You know where I'm from, homie?
You know all the shit I've seen
the cops do?
All the shit they done
put me through?
I'll try.
That's good enough.
Anyone else?
What are you gonna do to him
if it's decided
he was in the wrong?
I don't know yet.
Do you all think you can
be fair and impartial,
regardless of the consequences?
The real question,
my brother,
is will you go all the way
with the consequences if we do?
I approached
the driver's side window
and asked the driver for
his license and registration.
He proceeded to pull the
documentation from his glove box
and handed me an insurance card
that I could see was expired.
He asked to look again
for another copy of the card.
But it being dark, I feared for the
safety of myself and my partner.
So I pulled him from the vehicle and attempted
to retrieve the active document myself.
When you previously told
this story and this time too,
you said you were given a card
that was expired,
which I saw gave the idea
to the general public
that the car was uninsured.
Unfortunately, sir, I don't control
what the general public thinks.
But you do remember me saying
repeatedly the car was insured?
Yes. But when...
But you did not give me an
opportunity to re-check the glove box?
No. And I've told you why.
After the shooting, did they
find out the car was insured?
- Yes, I believe they did.
- Was it?
It was.
In your own words, what happened
that night in July?
Start from the beginning.
We were driving south bound
on Virginia Avenue
just after shift change.
Officer Hollander and myself
saw the white Civic
cross the intersection
at an elevated speed.
Upon pulling over the vehicle,
Officer Hollander called in
to request backup.
After directing the car
to the side,
we approached the car
to find two black males.
- You and the deceased.
- Kajani.
That's his name.
Yeah.
- And then we...
- No, you approached the car
to find me and Kajani Jefferson.
Say it with his name.
We approached the car
to find you
and Kajani Jefferson seated in the
driver side and passenger respectively.
- Approached from where?
- The passenger's side.
- Close to Kajani?
- Yes.
Continue.
The driver then provided
an expired insurance card.
There was a small altercation around
whether the car was indeed insured.
It was at that time,
Hollander asked him to exit the car.
And then what?
Hollander proceeded
to search the driver.
When that's when Kajani reached
for something out of my sight.
- You pulled your gun?
- Yes.
You don't know what someone
could have underneath their seat.
Do you remember me
saying repeatedly
can I reached past
my 14-year-old son?
Yes, but a 14...
A 14-year-old could still
be grabbing for a gun.
But it wasn't a gun, was it?
- No, no. It was his phone.
- So you put your gun away?
No, we're taught
not to de-escalate.
No, once a gun is drawn,
it's drawn
- for safety.
- For whose safety?
That's what we're taught.
And then what happened?
He wouldn't stop recording.
And so I pulled him...
Kajani out of the car.
- Put it down!
- I have the right to film.
Exit the car and put your hands
in the air!
- KJ, put the phone down!
- I can film.
- Put the phone down!
- Exit the fucking car!
It's just a cellphone.
Easy. It's just a cellphone.
I need you to put
the phone away.
Put the phone away
and sit on the curb.
- He's unarmed. Okay?
- Just put your phone away.
Put your fucking phone away!
- Hey! Hey!
- Put your fucking phone away!
Get off him!
After the shots, what happened?
No, no, no!
I got in my car
and went to my house.
You went to your house?
That's protocol.
After a shooting,
you go home.
You wait for your superiors
to arrive.
Okay. Okay.
You said the suspect sped
through the intersection.
- Yes.
- You're still saying I was speeding?
- Did you clock him?
- No, we didn't clock him,
but you could tell he was at a
higher speed than what was posted.
If they weren't speeding,
would you have pulled them over?
No.
So if the driver had the proper
insurance card, what would have happened?
We would have let him go.
Kajani Jefferson might
be alive today.
What kind of bullshit
justification is that?
Seriously, since when
do jury members speak?
The only job that they have
is to keep their mouth shut.
Guess what,
you're not in control.
But there's a reason why courts
do things the way they do.
And how is that
working out for us?
Anyone who wants to speak,
feel free to speak.
Throughout this process,
everyone who wants a voice will have one.
Are you allowed to pull someone over for
speeding without knowing their actual speed?
- An officer can use judgment.
- What is that, the law?
Or do you just make it up
as you go?
No, we don't.
You see, nobody knows
what our job is like.
Twenty-four seven,
get the bad guys.
And we can all sit here
and pretend all we want that...
That all the Blacks that get
killed are killed by police,
and that they're all unarmed
and that they're all good people
and that they're all just,
you know...
I don't know, that the cops
are the only ones running around
trying to kill 'em,
but it's not true.
Couldn't be further
from the truth.
Everyone knows the statistics
on Black on Black crime.
How many Blacks are killed
in a year by other Blacks?
They don't put those numbers
in the news.
Do you have the statistics on
whites killing whites in a year?
Or Chinese killing Chinese?
Whites and the Chinese aren't the
ones cramming the prison system.
They're also not the ones
brought over here like property.
Hundreds of years ago.
And what does that have to do with
anything that we're talking about?
You don't find it interesting
that the people
brought over here in chains
are still in chains?
No. No, I don't. Okay?
The slavery thing
is a fucking cop out.
It happened. Get over it.
It ain't my job
to make sense of it.
It's my job... It's our job to
get the bad people off the street.
Black, white, whatever color.
Systematic violence and terror
aimed at one group of people.
And you just said, get over it.
Would you say that about the Holocaust?
Or women's rights?
- It's not the same.
- How is that different?
The things women have
been through in this country,
in the military, on the force.
Are you supporting his side?
I'm supporting my side.
I'm a cop, and I dare anyone in
here to question my loyalty to that.
But I'm also a woman,
a Latina woman at that,
so I know how things in the past
affect things happening now.
I can see that, you know,
for women
and definitely for the Holocaust.
But for them?
Why is it so hard for you
to empathize with Black people?
Because you guys make it hard.
That's more of that racist shit
right there.
No, that.
That's the fucking problem.
That's the problem in this country.
Anytime someone speaks the
truth, they're labeled a racist.
Let me tell you something.
The KKK is racist.
Nazis are racist.
So the only people that could be racist
are those that are in the KKK or the Nazis?
Anybody else? Anybody else by default
is cool is what you're saying.
I mean, like, fuck. Even right now,
I feel like I might say the wrong thing.
And I'm not racist. I know that.
I don't see color.
You color blind?
You know what I mean.
You said you're color blind.
I mean, I don't treat people differently
based on the color of their skin.
Any one of these guys
will tell you that.
I've had partners of all colors.
And, you know, frankly,
I haven't met many racist cops.
- We have a black captain, for Christ sakes.
- Meaning what?
Meaning that it's fucking
impossible for us to be racist.
Impossible. That's like saying
it's impossible to be sexist
'cause you're married
to a woman.
Programming is programming.
When a person buys
into a system or a culture
that teaches that racism,
that dominance,
that person, if they Black,
they white, Chinese...
- Oh, come on.
- ...whatever color they are,
they proudly reflect
that culture in every situation.
So, what you're saying
is that it's possible
for a black cop to be racist
towards another black,
to target him,
or shoot him based on a bias.
Hell, yeah,
he'll probably shoot him twice.
That's bullshit.
Come on, you guys, you...
Fuck, never mind.
No, Go on.
Say your piece.
I'm just saying,
you guys wanna cry race?
But a lot of the things that
black people have to deal with
is based on the way
black people act.
Look at hip hop music.
What is it? Uh...
"Drug the hoe, get the hoe,
shoot the bitch, do the..."
Whatever the fuck.
What do you expect?
And you think
I want my daughter
to hang around with people
that think that way?
I mean, let alone
come to my house. Hell, no!
But you let your kids
listen to it and buy it, right?
Those are the dollars
that keep it getting made.
White people buy the music that
blacks pay for with our lives.
The black kids think
they have to live that life
to make the music,
so your daughter can go buy it.
It's a cycle. It happens
again and again and again.
What are you saying?
This is our fault?
He's making a point.
No matter how bullshit
the music is,
y'all appropriate it,
fetishize it.
The demand rises,
the profits rise,
the sales rise.
Then it's just blacks and
Latinos exploited for the supply.
Man...
You all just reach
and reach.
Or maybe Blacks and Latinos
aren't all victims.
Maybe they are
the actual thugs
that they're saying they are
in their music.
Nah. You don't
know me, homie.
You don't know anything
about me, bro.
I'm crushing my people?
I'm crushing my people,
you fucking cartel wannabe!
Huh? You think you know me?
You think you know me?
You think you know
anything about me? Huh?
Fucking, your gang tattoos.
You think you're all
fucking hard, huh?
Killing, pushing drugs,
selling little girls.
And you think you're fucking
better than me?
No, dawg,
You don't know me, homie.
You don't know shit
about me, huh?
Fucking, you make it
impossible
for fucking Hispanic
or Latino people
to get ahead
in this fucking country,
'cause all they see is you,
and your fucking tattoos,
and your fucking
gangster shit.
Fuck you.
Kind of proves my point.
Two Hispanic guys arguing.
It's heated.
But is it racial? No.
Black guys, white guys,
Hispanic guys.
The thing that separates us
isn't race.
It's class, it's education.
You have kids?
Yeah, I got two girls.
They go to public school?
No. I work my ass off
so they don't have to.
Why? Why not public school?
What's wrong with that?
I mean, if all a person
has to do
is get an education,
then why does it matter
where they get it?
You know why.
Because private schools
are built like colleges.
And public schools,
where little brown
and black kids are,
they're built like prisons.
So, it's no surprise
when private school kids
go to college.
And public schools,
like where I grew up,
they don't even
graduate kids
on their way
to locking them up.
And that is a race problem,
Officer.
But that's America, right?
We don't fix the system,
just put a premium
on the way to get around it.
You think only black people
have to deal with that?
No. We just sit in the
worst position to beat it.
Which is why I sacrificed
everything I had
to put my son
in a better position.
Taking him out
of where he was,
and putting him into a place
where he could survive.
Well, guess what?
It wasn't enough.
I couldn't save him.
I couldn't save my boy,
not from him.
And why couldn't he
have just complied?
None of you ever comply.
'Cause we're fucking tired!
We're tired of being stalked
and intimidated
and getting our asses kicked
whenever you feel like it.
That attitude
is why that shit happens.
If you all just took
a second to think,
then maybe you'd avoid
all that shit.
If all of you
took a second to think,
maybe you wouldn't kill
so many of us.
I didn't mean
to kill your son.
- But you did.
- I did what I was trained to do.
There was a threat.
And I was... I was scared.
Which we're trained.
We're trained to go home. That's the...
I have a kid at home, too.
Whatever, I am a human being,
just like anybody else.
You know, every, every day,
I, I go to work,
and I want to go home
to my kids.
I want to see my son.
I had a split second
to decide
whether you were going
to attack my partner
or your kid
was gonna reach for his gun.
I didn't wanna get shot.
I wanted to go home.
We wanted to go home, too.
This is my son.
This is my little boy.
This is what was
taken from me.
He didn't ask to be born.
He didn't ask to be black.
And he didn't ask
to get shot.
Look at him. Look at him!
I'm never gonna be able
to hug my son again.
Never gonna see him get
married or have children.
Officer Randall
took that from me.
The world
took that from me.
I just want justice.
That's all I want.
I just want justice.
He took it from me.
But you,
you can give it back.
Why can't you
just accept responsibility,
that you put your son
in that situation
by breaking the law
and going over
the posted speed limit.
What speed were we going?
The speed.
What speed were we going?
You pulled us over 'cause
we were speeding, right?
What speed were we going
when you pulled us over?
It was over a year ago.
You want me to remind...
We'll get the report.
Get the report, Derwood.
It's not in the report.
- Why not?
- Because I didn't record it.
I registered it
based on what I remember.
Okay, what did you see?
What was the speed?
I mean, it's residential,
so it's 25 miles-per-hour, right?
- I don't know.
- You don't know?
You were there, right?
Same car, same time.
What was the speed?
What? 45, 50?
Forty-five, 50,
seems right.
Yeah. You sure?
Not exactly, no.
I don't remember.
Well, I do remember.
I do remember,
'cause I was there, too.
I've played it over
a thousand times in my mind,
trying to think about
all the reasons
why this thing went wrong.
We were crossing Virginia
at Lombardi,
residential area.
Twenty-five miles-
per-hour posted.
Which is why 45
would have seemed very...
Not when there's
speed bumps 20 feet apart
on each side
of the intersection.
We were not speeding up,
were we, Officer Randall?
We were slowing down.
Just long enough
for you to see two black men
driving through that
prestigious neighborhood.
Race has
nothing to do with it.
Are you standing by your
story that we were speeding?
- It's an officer's...
- Officer Randall!
Are you standing by your story
that we were speeding?
What do you expect?
You were driving
in that neighborhood
in that crappy car,
which is suspicious.
You went there
after 12:00 midnight.
Who's driving around in that
neighborhood after midnight?
People are coming home, yes.
But most of the people
driving around
in that situation
are bad people,
looking to do bad things.
- So you profiled us.
- You are damn right I did.
Like, you get pissed off
if your car gets
broken into, right?
You get pissed off if your
house gets burglarized.
But how are we supposed
to find those bad people
if we're not
pulling people over?
The only way
to find these bad people
is by pulling them over.
We pull them over, we see
burglary tools, stolen mail.
Worse, nine times
out of ten,
see, in that situation,
something's up.
Do you want to be...
Do you want to be safe?
You want to be kept safe?
We keep you safe.
That's the cost.
And there it is.
So, if the officers didn't
profile that man and his son...
That man and his son
make it home at night.
And Kajani Jefferson
might be alive today.
No, no... Get down, get down!
Get down.
Come on, bitch.
You're the guy that took me in,
following me
with your fake ass charge.
Fuck you, you gangster
fucking piece of shit!
Fuck you, bitch.
You fucking talk shit
and you get a beating!
Come on.
Come on, fight me.
Settle down.
Settle down, man.
Get him back
to his cell.
All right,
let me help you up.
Yeah, okay.
Let me help, come on.
No, wait!
- Come on, now.
- Fuck!
Get the fuck off me!
Get off me!
Linc.
Oh, shit.
- Stay down.
- Shit.
You all right?
Hey, hey, hey.
Sit down.
Come over here, sit down.
You all right?
Ugh, better than
all right, nephew.
Yeah, it went through.
- We gotta get him outta here.
- Yeah.
No, it's not gonna happen.
All I gotta do
is call.
Look, Uncle, listen to me.
If it hit an artery or
something, we can't stop it.
Don't matter
what happen to me.
I'm old. I've been around
a long time.
And because of you,
I get to live.
So, hell no,
I ain't going nowhere.
- You understand?
- Yes, sir.
Go on, get back to it.
I got him, Linc.
I got him.
Lincoln.
You need to end this.
Nothing good
is gonna come
out of what
you're doing here.
You've imprisoned cops,
and allowed them
to be attacked by inmates.
You've taken
civilians hostage.
You've got
an injured comrade,
and you've got World War III
outside.
On top of all that,
your experiment is done.
Your 12th juror is gone...
So turn it in,
so no one else gets hurt.
I think he's right.
Jordin. You're up.
- What?
- You're the 12th Juror. Come on.
- No, Linc. I can't...
- I'm not asking.
He's biased.
I'm not biased.
This is a bad move, Linc.
We're moving
this thing forward.
Vote your conscience.
Take as much time
as you need.
Are you okay?
I don't wanna be
in the middle of this.
None of us do.
But we're here now,
and it's like he said.
Whatever happens,
just vote your conscience.
Hey, kid...
Just remember
what's at stake here.
So, guilty.
And not guilty.
Well, it's all or nothing.
Maybe we don't vote.
Will you be the one to go out there
and tell him we're gonna refuse.
We have to treat this
like we would if we were outside.
We rehash the facts,
determine if he broke the law.
He broke the law
when he profiled.
That doesn't mean
he planned to kill that kid.
It doesn't have to,
by his own words,
it's plain and simple,
He should have never
been in that position.
It's not plain.
It's not simple.
It's a police officer's life,
his family, his reputation.
Reputation.
Are you serious right now?
Talking about
fucking reputation?
It's funny how you wanna
talk about reputation now.
They don't talk
about reputation
when they sending Blacks
and Latinos away for life.
All right, we need
to stay productive, here.
You just need
to stay on point, okay?
And let's be clear,
we're not sentencing him.
We're just determining guilt.
Now, why do you think
he is not guilty?
Pulling someone over
is the most dangerous action
a cop does on a daily basis.
That's just dangerous.
So you'll
be blind to the fact
that it became dangerous
because he thought he was black?
Are we here to
determine if the cop broke the law?
We're here
to find the truth, homeboy.
We're here to find
the truth.
You good?
Yeah, I'm all right.
You?
I'm cool.
Well, this needs
closure, man.
We'll get it.
One way or another.
I still don't know why they
let him leave the crime scene.
Doesn't everyone else have to
make a statement right away?
- Right?
- He was getting the story straight.
Or maybe
just to get him away
to help him calm down.
Killing a kid
must be traumatizing.
But seeing your child killed
has to be traumatic, too.
You have thoughts, Jordin?
I mean, I'm not sure
we're gonna get anywhere
if everyone
doesn't contribute
and add something here.
I grew up middle class.
I actually have an uncle
who was a cop,
and, I believe, a good man.
So, um...
I've been
a little conflicted.
It's hard for me to believe
that all cops are bad.
Do I think that police have
a dangerous job? Of course.
Do I think
that Officer Randall
woke up that morning
thinking about killing
someone's kid? No.
Can I say,
without a shadow of a doubt,
that race was
the driving force around
Kajani Jefferson
being killed?
I don't know.
I look around this precinct
and I see stickers
and banners that say,
"Back the blue"
and "Support our police."
Things left over from the
backlash of Kajani getting killed.
But I haven't seen
anything acknowledging
that a kid lost his life.
A citizen who was expected
to be a patriot.
How can anyone
who has this...
This history of pain
and poverty
and subjugation
be expected to be
a patriot, proud to be
an American,
only to be shot down because
of their American skin?
And how could anyone patriotic
ignore these killings
and yet pride themselves on
being a part of a great nation?
Great nations aren't great
because they oppress,
but because they liberate,
not because they kill,
but because they heal.
Police and soldiers
should be the
gatekeepers of that truth
and should protect it
with their lives.
Fuck, man,
this fucking sucks.
This really actually
fucking sucks.
It sucks. People are dying.
Kids are dying.
I don't wanna hear another
story of a black kid
killed by a cop.
Yeah, I don't wanna
hear how
the cop did the right thing
no matter the circumstances,
and I don't wanna have to
see another mother and father
just grieving and powerless
and pushed to the point with...
Where they're willing
to give their own lives.
So if it means us
doing the right thing
will make this man
have to suffer.
If it means us having
to hold him accountable
so that police
everywhere would just
take a beat
before they
make his mistake...
then so be it.
They're ready, nephew.
Officer Michael Randall
in the murder
of Kajani Jefferson,
we, the jury, find you...
guilty.
What does that mean?
What does that mean?
- What did you do, huh?
- Hey, hey!
What did you do?
- Don't, don't do this.
- What are you doing?
On his knees.
Is this yours?
Yes.
Call your wife and kid.
Call them
on video.
My, God. Thank God.
- Yeah, baby.
- Honey.
Are you okay? You coming out?
Is everything okay?
No, I don't think
I'm coming out.
What's going on, baby?
What's going on?
I've got someone here
who wants to talk to you.
He's taking
the phone from me.
Dad.
Hey, buddy.
Are you okay?
I'm good.
Your picture's on TV.
When are you
coming home?
You know I...
I love you, kid.
All right. You gotta...
You take care of your mom.
Mike, Mike, you're scaring him.
What's going on?
I'm not gonna
make it out of it.
What? What are you talking about?
No, no, no, no, no.
Don't talk like that.
You know,
I made a mistake,
and, uh...
No, no, no, no, no.
Mike, listen to me.
I'm coming, okay?
In two seconds, right now.
I... I love you.
I'm gonna get Jason.
I'm gonna come to you right now.
- I love you so much.
- I'm gonna come to you right now.
Look...
That indescribable feeling
I've been carrying the
last year and a half.
Now you know.
I'm sorry.
I'm so sorry.
That's it?
Yup.
I did what I came to do.
I'll take it all the way
if they let me
serve whatever time
they throw at me.
Well, at least no cops died.
That's the miracle, right?
That was the plan.
How did you know
they would convict?
I didn't.
So all of this
was to make the cops see?
No.
Just to make the world see.
That's why you're here.
I'll see you
on the other side.
You know for the first
time in my life, I feel like
I'm the one
questioning everything.
You know, if it's okay,
I'd like to
walk out with you.
Not as an enemy.
You might want to put that down?
This is Officer Mike Randall.
I'm walking out with Lincoln Jefferson.
He's unarmed.
I repeat, he's unarmed!
Linc! Linc, no!
No! No!
Linc, no! Get up! No!
Lincoln!
And we have
breaking news tonight.
Authorities have
confirmed
that ex-marine
Lincoln Jefferson
was killed just
minutes ago
when he attempted to exit the
downtown police department
while holding
several hostages.
...unconfirmed reports
on social media
that Lincoln Jefferson
may have had contact
with Islamic extremists.
Information that many say
further suggests
a suicide mission.
He was clearly suffering
from some sort
of mental illness.
It's just so sad.
We do have to
switch gears now
and toss it over
to Steve, with sports.
Basketball season
is finally upon us,
and, hey, we have plenty of
early season tournament action
about the kickoff
here in November.
But before we get
to any of that,
we gotta talk
about my man
Mon'Quarion Washington.
M&M, the six foot nine, 225 pound
senior, is a monster on the court.