Justin Robinson. | Source: Alicia (Robin) Robinson/GoFundMe
An online crowdfunding effort that started in the wake of the fatal police shooting of a gun violence activist earlier this month in Washington, D.C., has barely attracted any attention despite growing demonstrations protesting what’s been described as a “senseless tragedy.”
Justin Robinson, 26, was shot at least 11 times at point-blank range in the early morning hours of Sept. 1 after an apparent crash into a fast food drive-thru lane in the southeast quadrant of the nation’s capital. But the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) only released body camera video footage from the shooting on Monday, sparking prompt outrage from the community over the manner in which the Black driver was shot and killed.
According to the police narrative, MPD officers approached Robinson’s crashed car and found him unresponsive with a gun “inside the vehicle.” When Robinson “began moving inside the vehicle,” MPD cops drew their own guns, including one who could be heard on bodycam video telling Robinson “I’m gonna shoot you in your f*cking face.”
MPD claims Robinson “grabbed one of the officer’s service weapons,” resulting in two cops fatally shooting him.
An attorney representing Robinson’s family told CBS News that Robinson “naturally attempted” to move the cop’s gun away from his face before his actions were met with a barrage of bullets. Attorney Brandon Burrell said the continued shooting even after it was clear that Robinson had been struck by gunfire constitutes “police brutality.”
The body camera video footage can be viewed by clicking here. It is graphic and should be be viewed with discretion.
Burrell also described Robinson as someone who worked as a violence interrupter for Cure the Streets, a program run by the D.C. Office of the Attorney General that is “aimed at reducing gun violence.”
Hours after the bodycam video footage was released to the public, protesters descended upon MPD’s Seventh District police station to where the responding officers were assigned. The protests turned violent, police said, resulting in multiple arrests.
However, despite the growing attention to the shooting, efforts to raise money to help and support Robinson’s family have largely fallen flat.
As of Friday morning, a GoFundMe account started by Robinson’s mother had raised a little more than $1,400 of its $25,000 goal. The GoFundMe page says Robinson was “working tirelessly to create a safer and more compassionate Washington, DC” before being robbed of his life.
The GoFundMe also suggested the family planned to take legal action, something that donations would help support.
“Justin’s life was dedicated to making our city better, and now, we must honor his legacy by standing against this injustice,” Alicia (Robin) Robinson wrote in part.
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