Black man shot 11 times by Lafayette police while walking away from them

Source: Gilles BASSIGNAC / Getty

UPDATED: 10:36 a.m. ET, August 24, 2020 —

Another Black man met his fate at the hands of trigger-happy police officers on Friday. According to ABC13, killer cops in Lafayette, Louisiana shot an unidentified African-American man 11 times at a gas station as he was walking AWAY from them. Per usual, a nearby witness captured the incident on a cell phone camera. The man has been identified as Trayford Pellerin and his mother told Louisiana police that her son has long suffered social anxiety and was seeking therapy. The family plans to sue the police department for Trayford’s fatal shooting.

That video is currently going viral on social media and we will warn you that is graphic, disturbing, and triggering. It shows police following the man with their guns drawn and trained on his back as he attempts to walk into the convenience store. Someone in the clip is heard saying that he has a knife but that has not been confirmed on any level.

11 gunshots can be heard and the man is seen collapsing to the ground. At no point is he seen charging police officers or attacking them in any way.

Again, this video is very disturbing.

At the time of the shooting The Louisiana State Police had not confirmed that the shooting took place and did not confirm the condition of Trayford or his identity. The officers involved have all been placed on administrative leave with pay pending an investigation. 

According to an updated report by ABC News, on the night of Friday, August 21st, Pellerin was seen outside of a convenience store where he appeared to be creating a disturbance with a knife in his hand. Video footage can be seen of the officers following Pellerin to a convenience store prior to shooting him on sight. The family believes he may have been suffering from a mental health crisis. Lafayette police asked the state police to do a detailed investigation into the incident. 

“Lafayette police shot Mr. Pellerin several times as he walked away from them,” Margaret Huang, president and CEO of the Southern Poverty Law Center, said in an emailed statement. “His killing demands an analysis of the excessive use of force by law enforcement. We fully support movement leaders’ calls for a swift and transparent investigation into Mr. Pellerin’s killing.”