Shooting of Jerame Reid

The shooting of Jerame Reid occurred on December 30, 2014, in Bridgeton, New Jersey. The encounter was captured on a video that was released on January 22, 2015.

Details

The two-minute fatal encounter started from a routine traffic stop, in which Bridgeton officers Braheme Days and Roger Worley pulled over a vehicle for running through a stop sign. While questioning the two men in the car, Leroy Tutt and Jerame Reid, the video shows Days suddenly shouting to his partner, "We've got a gun in his glove compartment!" followed by "Show me your fucking hands." Days, who appears to recognize Reid as he his heard calling him by his first name, retrieves a large silver handgun from the glove compartment. Days continues to warn Reid to not move, as Reid continues to move his hands around inside the vehicle. Several times, Days exclaims "He's reaching for something!" As the situation intensifies, someone in the vehicle can be heard telling the officers, "I'm not reaching for nothing. I ain't got no reason to reach for nothing." Reid then tells Days, "I'm getting out and getting on the ground." The officer responds, "No you're not, stay right there, don't move."

A struggle ensues as Reid pushes the door open with the officer attempting to keep the door closed. Overpowering Days, Reid pushes the door open, gets up, and exits the car with his hands extended forward and takes several steps towards Days, who backs up and fires as Reid continues towards him. Reid reacts to the shots by moving his hands upwards. Worley fires one shot, and Reid is killed.^[1][2] Reid was unarmed with his arms at his side and was moving towards Days while continually being told to not move before being shot.^[3]

Braheme Days

Braheme Days was a personal finance teacher with Woodbury High School in 2009.^[4] A 2011 article wrote that Days, aged 31 and a father of two, grew up in Bridgeton. During a meeting of Bridgeton residents, Days suggested violence is a "many-headed beast, and we are going to have to attack it from many angles".^[5] Days is the father of Braheme Days, Jr., a shot putter from Gridgeton High School.^[6]

Days joined the Bridgeton police force in 2012 after training in the academy for six months. He was praised by Police Chief Mark Ott for winning "four out of the five awards given to recruits in his graduating class". Cumberland County Prosecutor Jennifer Webb-McRae, who knew Days through another community leadership position he held, praised Days' "excellent character".^[7] In August 2014, Days and Patrolman Edward Connolly were allegedly shot at by Tyshaun S. Milledge while investigating a burglary. Milledge pleaded not guilty to the charge of shooting at the officers.^[8]

Between 2012 and the Reid shooting, there had been nine municipal court complaints filed alleging that Days had "stopped, searched or charged for no reason", but these complaints were dismissed with the reason of a lack of probable cause. In October 2014, a video emerged of a Bridgeton police officer spraying a handcuffed suspect with what appears to be pepper spray, with the suspect questioning why the "macing" was being used against him. People at the scene and within the video identified Days by name as the officer. In February 2015, a lawsuit was filed against Braheme Days by Shakera Brown. Brown claimed that from January to December 2014, Days extorted her for sex in exchange for not sending her to jail.^[9][10][11]

References