Why Should Delaware Care?
The Wilmington police fatal shooting 19-year-old Kadir Skinner in northeast Wilmington has become one of the city’s highest-profile use-of-force cases in years, prompting protests, promises of legal reform, and a likely lawsuit.
A Wilmington police officer pepper-sprayed a protester in her face on Friday during a protest on Interstate 95 against the police killing of Kadir Skinner, according to video of the incident.
The woman who was pepper-sprayed said it occurred after she had followed orders by police to back up. Video of the incident shows a line of police facing a group of protesters who back up several steps, then come to stop. The woman, who asked not to be named, was at the front of the group with her arms reaching outward to her side.
She told Spotlight Delaware that she had stood in between the police and a group of many Black protestors to act as a kind of “human shield.”
“As white women, that’s our role,” she said. “I’d rather it be me than anyone else.”
The video then shows one officer spraying a chemical irritant into her face and neck.
Caroline Klinger, spokeswoman for Wilmington Mayor John Carney, declined to comment.
A spokesman for the Wilmington Police Department did not respond to a request for comment.
Prior to the incident, the protestors – about 20 of them shown in the video – had marched onto a portion of Interstate 95 near Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard, causing authorities to close the expressway.
The protest was the latest of several demonstrations in recent weeks in response to the Wilmington police killing of 19-year-old Kadir Skinner in late June.
It also was not the first where claims emerged of police deploying irritant spray.
Shortly after a Wilmington police officer shot Skinner, a crowd gathered as the teen lay on the ground handcuffed. Videos of the aftermath show officers with pepper spray in their hands. Residents within the crowd are later heard asking police why they deployed the spray, but there does not appear to be clear video of that incident.
Friday’s protest began at the location Skinner was killed – 24th and Jessup streets.
It continued to Interstate 95 and then through the Trolley Square neighborhood and to the homes of U.S. Sen. Chris Coons and Delaware Attorney General Kathleen Jennings. Throughout, protestors held signs reading “Hold Killer Cops Accountable” and “Justice for Kadir Skinner.”
The woman who was pepper-sprayed continued on with the protest and spoke with Spotlight Delaware outside of Jennings’ home.
In the interview, she said the chemicals from the spray initially did not burn, attributing the delayed pain to her “big glasses.” Fellow protestors later helped her wash her eyes, using a gallon of milk purchased from a nearby gas station.
“I remembered you have to tilt your head back, not tilt it forward,” she said. “Two women ran in, bought me a gallon of milk, and just started dousing me with it.”
Skinner’s killing has caused public outrage and demonstrations, with protests especially picking up since authorities released body camera footage from the incident, earlier this month.
Wilmington officials say officers chased Skinner after they saw him walk out of a home pointing a gun at a large crowd of people. The body cam footage does not cover moments before the chase.
Skinner’s family has announced their intention to sue the city of Wilmington over the fatal shooting, alleging wrongful death and seeking $25 million.
Karl Baker contributed to this report.
