SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — An attorney for the family of a black man who was fatally shot by Utah police says he is going to ask the Department of Justice and FBI to investigate the shooting and reports of racial discrimination in the city where it occurred.
Lawyer Randall Edwards said Friday at a news conference that it’s likely that 22-year-old Darrien Hunt was dressed as a Japanese anime character and role-playing when the shooting occurred.
Edwards says that could explain why Hunt was carrying a sword.
Hunt was killed on Sept. 10 in a strip mall in Saratoga Springs, south of Salt Lake City. His family says he was shot because he was black.
Authorities, however, say race played no role in the shooting. They say officers were reacting to Hunt lunging at them with a steel sword.
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