The grown sons of a man shot and killed by New Brunswick police in September spoke publicly for the first time Saturday about their father's death as part of a local protest that coincided with National Day of Awareness Against Police Brutality.
The sons spoke near where the father, 47-year-old Barry Deloatch, was killed Sept. 22 in an alley off Throop Avenue and Handy Street, in New Brunwsick, N.J.
"I'm going to still stand my ground with wanting to see justice served," said Deloatch's oldest son, also named Barry. "Everything will fall into place like a domino effect once justice is served. Until then, you're going to continue to see my face, you're going to continue to see my family."
The elder Deloatch was shot just after midnight on Sept. 22, after two police officers chased him into the alley. Prosecutors said the officers, who were on routine patrol, stopped to question Deloatch and two other men, and Deloatch fled.
The officers then followed him into an alley, "where a struggle ensued and resulted in the shooting," prosecutors said in a statement.
He did not have a gun when he was shot by police. Sources said Deloatch was armed with a stick and hitting officers, but his family maintains he had no weapon of any type on him.
National civil rights and activist organizations have taken up Deloatch's case, calling for action against the police officers involved and a review of the police department's Internal Affairs process.
Deloatch's sons have also filed a notice of claim indicating their intent to sue the town and the local police department.
They said Saturday they still have not been contacted by the mayor and still have not officially been given the names of the officers who shot their father.
The news conference was followed by a march in Feaster Park protesting the Deloatch shooting. A local branch of NAACP, along with the United Youth Council and the newly formed Direct Action Coalition, participated in the march.
Salaam Ismial, an organizer of the DA Coalition, had previously called on the county prosecutor to take over police operations after it was discovered that an Internal Affairs investigator, Sgt. Richard Rowe, had allegedly disposed of 81 residential complaints against the police department.
The Deloatch family agreed Saturday, saying it tied in to Deloatch's shooting death. "It still totally shows why Barry Deloatch is not with us here today," said Hudson. "It shows a lack of respect and a lack of leadership within the New Brunswick community."
Rowe was arrested, prompting New Brunswick mayor James Cahill to call a series of community forums to discuss community-police relations and the police Internal Affairs process, reports MyCentralJersey.com.
But a spokesperson for the Deloatch family said at the family press conference Saturday Cahill "shouldn't just be holding a forum just so people can ask questions."
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"This forum should be about change, this forum should be about action," said . "We want action, we want a change, we want accountability on his police officers, on his administration."
