The police shooting of University of Virginia graduate, Donovon Lynch, in Virginia Beach has been ruled a homicide, according to an autopsy exclusively obtained by the New York Post.
Lynch was shot and killed in March during an encounter with Virginia Beach city cop Solomon Simmons III. Details regarding the encounter have remained hazy, but local officers did suggest that Lynch was “brandishing a handgun at the time of the shooting.”
“An independent witness corroborated that Mr. Lynch was in possession of a handgun earlier on the evening of March 26,” the Virginia Beach Police Department said.
However, Lynch's friend, Darrion Marsh, and members of his family disputes this claim.
“[I] did not see Lynch pull out a gun before he was shot and that Simmons opened fire without warning as Marsh and Lynch retreated to their car following two earlier shootings that left one dead and eight injured," Marsh told the Washington Post.
Lynch's death did not only outrage his family and friends, it also outraged the surrounding community. Virginia Tech Hokies Football star Jordan Williams and state legislature Jay Jones have called for a federal probe to look into the matter. Not to mention, legendary producer and Lynch's cousin, Pharrell Williams, issued a statement.
“Too many unanswered City and State questions. Respectfully, I am calling for a Federal investigation,” Williams wrote on Instagram in March.
"I’m calling for a full investigation by the AG into the officer-involved shooting of Donovan Lynch in Virginia Beach. We need far better accountability and transparency, and the families of those killed by police, in Virginia Beach and across this country, deserve answers," state lawmaker Jay Jones added.
More recently, Lynch's father, Wayne, filed a $50 million wrongful death lawsuit against the Virginia Beach police. The lawsuit alleges that Simmons III killed Lynch “unlawfully and without warning."
Thus far, no officers have been charged or arrested in connection to Lynch's death.
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