ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. — Friends and family gathered Monday to lay to rest the body of Andrew Brown Jr., a Black man who was fatally shot by sheriff’s deputies last month, sparking controversy and protests in this northeast North Carolina town.
Brown’s body was paraded down Ehringhaus Street inside a horse-drawn carriage, then switched to a hearse at a Popeye’s along the route to Fountain of Life Church in Elizabeth City.
A red carpet was rolled out for Brown’s casket, which was brought into the funeral service flanked by the Rev. Al Sharpton and the nation’s top civil rights leaders. The cart carrying the black casket bumped over pacing stones on the way inside, making a sound like a drum tapping.
Sharpton issued a powerful call for transparency and the release of body camera footage during his eulogy.
“You don’t need time to get a tape out. Put it out! Let the world see what there is to see. If you’ve got nothing to hide, then what are you hiding?” he said, to loud applause at the invitation-only service.
A judge ruled last week that the video would not be made public for at least a month to avoid interference with a pending state investigation into the April 21 shooting of Brown, 42, by deputies attempting to serve drug-related search and arrest warrants.
Among those attending the service was 40-year-old Davy Armstrong, who said he went to high school with Brown and lived near him while the two were growing up. He said Brown seemed to be doing well when he ran into him recently before the shooting.
“He was very humble, very generous. He said he was doing good,” said Armstrong, who works in construction. “We hear about this on TV all the time. But when it’s someone so well known and so respected, it’s pretty painful.”
After the funeral, 67-year-old Michael Harrell, who lives around the corner from Brown’s house, recalled that he would see Brown playing with his kids in the yard.
“Everything is in God’s hands,” Harrell said of the message he took away from the funeral. “And through God’s hands, truth and justice will be served. People will be held accountable.”
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing Brown’s family, also spoke during the services. Calling Brown’s death an “unjustifiable, reckless shooting,” Crump told mourners the legal team would continue fighting for justice and transparency.
“We are here to make this plea for justice because Andrew was killed unjustifiably, as many Black men in America have been killed: shot in the back. Shot, going away from the police. And because Andrew cannot make the plea for justice, it is up to us to make the plea for justice,” Crump said.
The FBI has launched a civil rights probe of the shooting, while state agents are conducting a separate investigation. Three deputies who were involved remain on leave.
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Andrew Brown Jr.’s family and friends gather for emotional farewell - Boston Herald
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