May 20, 2021
Police Officer Allegedly Urinated on The Funeral Home That Served Andrew Brown Jr.
A funeral home that belongs to a Black council member who sympathizes with the death of Andrew Brown Jr. was allegedly urinated on by a police officer in uniform.
Elizabeth City, North Carolina, council member Gabriel Adkins says he has surveillance footage of an officer urinating on his private property, blatantly a sign of disregard for Black lives, according to The Washington Post.
Hours after Brown was shot, Adkins shared his feelings about the shooting with his colleagues. “As a Black man sitting here tonight, I’m afraid. I’m afraid that I may be the next one, you know,” Adkins said, implying that he might be the next Brown, a 42-year-old unarmed Black man who was shot and killed by police in his car.
“I’m completely furious that any member of the sheriff department would think these acts are acceptable,” Adkins told WaPo. “This is a funeral home. A place where we house family’s loved ones. I have lost all trust and respect for our sheriff department.”
Related stories: FAMILY OF ANDREW BROWN JR. LABEL HIS DEATH BY NORTH CAROLINA COP AN ‘EXECUTION’
The video was posted to Facebook and became a breaking news story on Raleigh News & Observer.
The explanation for why the officer, who is Black, urinated on the funeral home was given by the Pasquotank County Sheriff Tommy Wooten via WaPo’s email.
“Apparently, the Black officer in question was on patrol around 2:30 a.m. and had nowhere to use the restroom. Wooten also said the Black officer technically relieved himself near an outbuilding behind the business close to a nearby field.”
In addition to Wooten’s statement, the spokesman said the Black officer “didn’t know who owned the business and meant no disrespect to Mr. Adkins and has reached out to apologize to him.”
“I’ve reinforced to all deputies the need to respect the community and avoid even the appearance of anything that could be seen as disrespectful,” Wooten added.