A social media and protest campaign is demanding justice for Dillon Taylor, a white Utah man who was shot and killed by Salt Lake City police.
Some of the campaigners are linking Taylor’s death with the killing of Michael Brown earlier this month, which led to sometimes violent protests in Ferguson, Mo.
Taylor, 20, was shot two times near a 7-Eleven on Aug. 11 after getting into a confrontation with police officers.
According to the New York Times, his supporters have said he was unarmed and also said his death hasn’t received enough attention amid reports about Brown’s death.
Aaron Swanenberg, a longtime friend of Taylor, told the Times this week: “We want answers — we need them.”
The SLC Police Chief addressed criticism and the militarization of police in the wake of Taylor’s death.
Chief Chris Burbank said, “The officer involved in this circumstance had a camera on his body, and the entire incident has been captured.”
The officer, he added, was “not a white officer,” but he didn’t elaborate further, reported News Channel 9. “Officers should be held to extremely high standards, but that cannot be an impossible standard,” Burbank continued.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, there’s been a number of protests about Taylor’s death in recent days.
“Somewhere it’s got to stop,” protester Oscar Ross said earlier this week. He was standing in front of the Salt Lake City police station.
He added: “There’s going to be backlash. I’m not anti-police ... but it’s in the mind-set of these officers now: Shoot first and ask questions later.”
Taylor’s aunt was also on hand.
“We have to have justice because no matter what, we’re missing somebody at our dinner tables at night,” his aunt, Gina Thayne, told the Tribune. “We have to fix this, and the only way we’re going to be able to fix it is if everybody continues staying together.”
Supporters also set up the Justice for Dillon Taylor Facebook page.
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