UNIONTOWN, PA. NAACP wants blacks on panels

The boy was shot in the heart while running away from a stolen car.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- The NAACP is demanding that blacks be represented at all investigations -- including a coroner's inquest -- into the shooting death of a 12-year-old black boy during a state police chase last week.
"We insist upon and demand cooperation and a complete investigation at all levels of local, county, state and federal law enforcement," the Fayette County chapter of the group said in a statement.
Clinton Anderson, chapter president, said in the statement that the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People "insists upon and demands" that at least three blacks serve on investigating bodies "to ensure that there is not just a token representation, but a fair representation."
What happened
Michael Ellerbe was shot in the heart last week while running from a stolen car in Uniontown, about 40 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, police said. Uniontown state police have released few details of the case -- including whether Ellerbe was killed by police -- claiming it could jeopardize their criminal investigation.
Troopers Juan Curry and Samuel Nassan chased Ellerbe on foot after the vehicle crashed after a short pursuit, police said. A coroner determined that Ellerbe was shot in the back.
State police forwarded the NAACP's demands to District Attorney Nancy Vernon.
Vernon wouldn't comment, but said in a statement that she has asked the U.S. Attorney's Office and FBI to do their own investigations to "ensure the public of a full, fair and multiagency review of this incident."
U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan said Monday her office has begun a civil rights investigation. After the police investigation and coroner's inquest, Vernon said she and Buchanan would decide whether further federal action is needed.
Not solely about race
Pittsburgh attorney Joel Sansone, who is representing Ellerbe's family, said of the NAACP's demands that "anything that will assist the authorities in learning the truth is a good thing."
While Sansone said "there are issues that impact the African-American community," he stressed the case wasn't solely about race.
"It's not first about a black boy, but first, why an unarmed child was shot," Sansone said. "No matter [what race] was involved on either end, the first question is not who, but why?"
State police, who are conducting a criminal investigation, face an already difficult task "being made more so by intense scrutiny by the public and media with raising questions of race," Sansone said.
Sansone urged the public to take a wait-and-see attitude regarding the case.
State police said Curry is black and Nassan is white. The troopers have been placed on administrative leave.
Inquest
Last week, Coroner Dr. Phillip E. Reilly said that while it often takes months before an inquest is held, he scheduled one for Jan. 29 because of what he called the "complexity and confusion" surrounding the case.
Reilly did not return a message seeking comment Monday on the NAACP's demand, but his office said he may release information about inquest plans later today.
Ellerbe's funeral was set for 1 p.m. today.