HOLLYWOOD, FLA. (WSVN) - A grieving family is demanding justice after a SWAT team raided their Hollywood home before they fatally shot a loved one.
The family of 23-year-old James Leatherwood is asking for answers after he was shot and killed on Sept. 5.
“Might get in trouble here and there but he was a good kid,” said Leatherwood’s mother Chantel Reed. “He wasn’t no bad kid. He was loved.”
Leatherwood was shot by Hollywood Police while they were executing a search warrant on Wiley Street.
He was wanted for questioning in the shooting death of 27-year-old Netrievae White who was murdered in Miami in August.
Family members said Leatherwood was home alone when the warrant was served.
“I’ve never seen my little brother with a weapon,” said the 23-year-old’s brother Alton Leatherwood. “Never. If he did, I never knew of it. He’d never been that type. When he came around, it’s all laughs.”
Hollywood Police said in court documents that no weapons were found in the apartment.
His family said they haven’t been told much else. “We want answers, we need answers,” Alton said.
Police told 7News via email, “While attempting to serve the warrant, officers gave repeated commands for Mr. Leatherwood to exit the residence, and he failed to comply.” They went on to say, “Mr. Leatherwood then made a sudden movement toward his waistband, placing the officers in fear for their safety. One of the officers then fired one time, and Mr. Leatherwood was struck.”
Leatherwood’s family said they want more, like the autopsy report and reimbursement for the damage that was left behind by the SWAT team.
They went before City Council members on Tuesday because they said they will not rest until they know what actually happened.
“I will not let up,” said Candie Reed, whose brother was killed. “My mother’s not gonna let up.”
The investigation in this case is still ongoing. The officer who fired the shot is on administrative leave.
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