A 22-year-old black man was shot and killed six times in the back by a pair of white police officers, and the victim's mother is convinced the attack was racial profiling.
Police responded to a call in Saratoga Springs, Utah that reported a "suspicious person walking around with a 'samurai-type' sword when they confronted [Darien] Hunt," reports MSNBC.
Hunt allegedly waved the three-foot plastic toy sword he was carrying on his back at the officers just before they opened fire on the man.
The officers shot Hunt six times, but he didn't die until he was about 100 yards away from the point where the man and the officers first began their conflict, reports MSNBC.
"I'm in Saratoga Springs, 'cause it's a safe little community, and they killed him. They killed my son because he's black. No white boy with a little sword would they shoot while he's running away," Susan Hunt, mother of the victim, tells Deseret News in tears.
After Ms. Hunt's allegations calling the situation racial profiling, the city released the following statement:
"We sympathize with Mr. Hunt's family during this difficult time. Any claim that our officers' actions were a result of Mr. Hunt's race are completely unfounded and speculative. Our officers responded to a call for service and addressed the situation that was presented to them."
Randall Edwards, an attorney for Hunt's family, is pressing for the issue of racial profiling to be further investigated since the officers were not interviewed thus far about the incident.
