Seven sheriff's deputies have been placed on administrative leave after Andrew Brown Jr., a Black man, was fatally shot while deputies were carrying out a search and arrest warrant on Wednesday morning in Elizabeth City, N.C. Three other deputies have resigned, the sheriff's office says, but it wasn't related to the incident.
During a press conference streamed online Friday evening, Pasquotank County Sheriff Tommy Wooten II expressed condolences to Brown's family and pledged that if any of his deputies are found to have violated laws or policies, "they will be held accountable."
During an emergency meeting Friday afternoon, members of the Elizabeth City Council voted unanimously to formally call on officials to release body camera footage from the shooting.
The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation is leading the probe. Officials at the NCSBI have said that body camera footage can only be released by a court order and they directed questions to Pasquotank County officials.
Protests began on Wednesday in response to the news of Brown's death and have continued since then.
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