DENVER — A four-day “week of action” continued Tuesday night in memory of 37-year-old Kilyn E. Lewis.
Lewis, who was unarmed, was shot and killed by an Aurora SWAT officer when Lewis pulled an object out of his pocket — later determined to be a cell phone — during an arrest attempt on May 23, according to bodycam video footage released last month.
The Justice for Kilyn Lewis Action Team is coordinating events to bring attention to Lewis’s death. Supporters gathered at Tequila Blues in Denver Tuesday night for an open mic night. Several attendees spoke out about justice and accountability.
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Lewis was wanted on attempted murder allegations in connection with a Denver shooting near E. 48th Avenue and Colorado Boulevard on May 5 that wounded a man walking in the area. Lewis was shot as police attempted to serve an arrest warrant. He died two days later in the hospital.
The bodycam video shows members from Aurora’s SWAT team surround Lewis with guns drawn and order him to the ground. Lewis instead walked toward the driver’s side of his vehicle as officers continued to yell at him to obey commands.
The video then shows Lewis move his right hand out of view of the officers momentarily as he grabs an object, later determined to be a cell phone. It’s at this point that Officer Michael Dieck fired a single shot before Lewis is heard repeatedly yelling at police, “I don’t have nothing!” as he falls to the ground.
“Nobody is above the law,” said Kiawa Lewis, Kilyn Lewis’s older brother. “This officer is not above the law, so he needs to pay for what he has done.”
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Lewis’s family said they plan to sue the Aurora Police Department.
“We are trying to put a stop to police brutality, killing our young males and older males without using their training techniques,” said LaRonda Jones, Kilyn Lewis’s mother.
Absolute Word Church and Kirk of Bonnie Brae United Church of Christ will host a community worship service on Wednesday at 7 p.m. There will be a rally and march on Thursday starting at 7 p.m. at the Aurora Municipal Center.
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