Walter Wallace Jr. family says Philadelphia police should not face murder charges: attorney

The family of a Black man killed by Philadelphia police officers this week, which sparked several nights of violent unrest, called for justice Thursday after watching body camera footage of the fatal encounter but stopped short of calling for murder charges.

“I would like to see justice done for what they did to my son,” said Kathy Brant, mother of Walter Wallace Jr.

Wallace was shot by two officers Monday when they were called to a West Philadelphia neighborhood. His family said the 27-year-old was experiencing a mental health crisis at the time. 

"I saw a person in obvious mental health crisis," the Wallace family attorney, Shaka Johnson, told reporters. "My auditory senses heard people shouting, 'He's mental, he's mental.'"

Johnson said the family does not want the officer to face murder charges.

"And here's why, here's why: They were improperly trained and did not have the proper equipment by which to effectuate their job," Johnson said.