Family says Walter Wallace Jr. was having a mental health crisis when fatally shot by police

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Walter Wallace Jr is the latest causality of shooting by police, and his death is leaving more questions than answers.

What happened to Walter Wallace Jr?

Wallace Jr., 27, was shot around 4 p.m. on Monday after two Philadelphia police officers to reports of a man with a knife.

Video footage

A video posted on social media, which has now gone viral, shows the 27-year-old walk into the street while officers pointed their guns at him.

“Put the guns down,” a person can be heard yelling, shortly before the officers move backwards as Wallace moves towards them.

The camera points to the ground as multiple gunshots are heard, but Wallace appeared to be several feet from the officers at the time.

A woman, later identified as his mother, is following him, trying to get hold of him as shouts ring through the air.

The camera moves up as Wallace drops to the ground and several people rush towards him. Screaming is heard and Wallace’s devastated mom is seen trying to hit one of the officers.

Wallace was transported to a local hospital where he later died.

It is not clear how many times he was shot but at least a dozen evidence markers were seen at the scene, according to reports.

Sgt. Eric Gripp, a spokesman for the Philadelphia Police Department, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that officers had ordered Wallace to drop the knife and that he had “advanced toward the officers.”

Mental health crisis

Wallace’s family said they called 9-1-1 for help after their loved one was having a mental health crisis.

Protests and civil unrest have erupted in Philadelphia as mixed emotions fester after the fatal shooting. Some city officials have called for transparency.

In a statement, Philadelphia councilwoman Jamie Gauthier called on police to “immediately” release the officers’ body camera footage of the incident.

“The public deserves a full, unvarnished accounting of what took place today,” she said.

Walter Wallace Jr protests

At least 12 Philadelphia police officers were hospitalized and 30 officers injured after protests broke out in the wake of the shooting.

Crowds set fire to cars and dumpsters and looted multiple stores in West Philadelphia, police said, according to NBC Philadelphia.

Investigation

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said Monday his office’s Special Investigation Unit would be working with police on the investigation.

“The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office takes its obligation to try to be fair and to seek evenhanded justice seriously,” Krasner said.

Both officers involved in the shooting been taken off street duty, pending an investigation as Philadelphia officials announced a full probe into the fatal shooting.