The city of Philadelphia is reeling after the police killing of 27-year-old Walter Wallace Jr. The Philadelphia resident was shot and killed on Monday at 4 p.m. after police responded to call about a disturbance in a nearby area. Tragically, his mother and brother looked on as the young, Black father was shot to death. In the hours following his death, demonstrators have taken to the streets in frustration. Now, Wallace Jr.'s family and friends are taking to the microphone to voice their concerns.
“Whatever happened yesterday, that was different. That wasn’t normal," Wallace Jr.'s neighbor, Tasha White, said.
Wallace Jr.'s family has raised concerns with how authorities responded to their calls for help. According to his father, the 27-year-old had struggled with mental health issues and was taking medication. His mother, Caty Wallace, says their family had called for help three times on the day that he was killed. At one point, she says that the officers laughed at her calls for help.
“They stood there and laughed at us," she said.
Making matters worse, members of the Wallace family claimed to have called for an ambulance and not police on the day that he was killed. Wallace Jr.'s wife, Dominique Wallace, added that the police officers that arrived were not properly equipped to handle the situation.
“When you come to a scene where somebody is in a mental crisis, and the only tool you have to deal with it is a gun...where are the proper tools for the job?” the Wallace family's attorney Shaka Johnson asked.
In the midst of the aftermath of this traumatic incident, Dominique Wallace is scheduled to give birth to Wallace Jr.'s child later this month. The 27-year-old leaves behind a wife and eight children.
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