NAACP seeks 5 actions in response to Niles cop shooting

Staff report

WARREN

The Trumbull County Chapter of the NAACP today issued a call to action by local and federal officials in response to the Niles police-involved shooting death last week of Matthew Burroughts outside a city apartment complex.

“The tragic loss of Matthew Burroughs to excessive force once again demonstrates the disarray within our country. An unarmed black male is a victim in our small community of Niles, Ohio. Matthew was aggressively shot four times by two Niles police officers,” Annette McCoy, president of the Trumbull County chapter of the nation’s oldest civil-rights organization said in a statement released tonight.

She added that the NAACP, community leaders, faith leaders and concerned citizens are calling for five concrete actions in the wake of Wednesday afternoon’s shooting. They include:

• A credible investigation into the incident and accountability for the law enforcement officers’ actions.

• Establishment of a civilian review board with subpoena power.

• Launching by the U.S. Department of Justice of a a full criminal and “pattern and practice” investigation into the shooting and other complaints within the Niles Police Department.

• Congress to enact legislation to mandate official standards for and training in the use of force for all law- enforcement officers. The community should reach out to elected officials to support this mandate.

• Immediate action on the requirement of body cams for all Trumbull County enforcement officers.

Burroughs, 35, who lived in the Royal Mall Apartment complex, was shot multiple times by Niles police about 2:30 p.m. Wednesday as he sat in his car in the parking lot of the apartment complex. He died of those wounds.

Read the full story Monday in The Vindicator and on Vindy.com.