Family of 21-year-old student killed by East Lansing police demands video footage of fatal shooting
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Authorities say Michigan State University student Isaiah Kirby was the suspect in a stabbing, which led to the officer-involved shooting where he was killed.
The family of a Michigan State University student from Maryland is seeking answers after he was shot and killed by police responding to a non-fatal stabbing.
On the evening of April 15, East Lansing Police Department officers responded to a reported theft at a business near the Lake Lansing and Abbot roads. According to the department’s news release, the call evolved into a stabbing by a suspect, which led to an officer-involved shooting by East Lansing officers, where the suspect died. The stabbing victim, 63-year-old attorney Douglas Mielock, did not know the suspect and was released from the hospital a few days later, per WLNS 6 News.
The suspect was 21-year-old Isaiah Kirby, a college student earning his degree in zoology at MSU.
His mother tells an even more harrowing depiction, saying she counted at least 17 bullet holes in his body. That and the fact that his face was swollen led to her decision to cremate his body, according to the Baltimore Banner.
“I cannot unsee what I saw. I cannot unhear what I heard. No mother should ever have to hear a body bag being unzipped after her child was gunned down in the street by the police,” Karyn Kirby told the news outlet.
Now, Karyn and other family members are asking for video footage of the shooting that ended his life. They believe that East Lansing police used excessive force when they confronted Isaiah. The East Lansing Police Department said it is piecing together a video timeline of the events and will release that information in the coming weeks. Michigan State Police is also investigating the fatal incident.
Teresa A. Caine Bingman, the attorney for Isaiah’s family, said in a statement, “We have made a formal written demand to the East Lansing Police Department and the Michigan State Police for immediate access to all complete, unedited video evidence, yet nothing has been released. In a case of this magnitude, the family, and the public, are entitled to the full truth, not edited or compiled footage.”
“Isaiah Kirby’s life mattered,” Bingman said. “The support of this community, combined with full transparency, is essential to ensuring accountability and justice.”