Video footage shows officer fatally shooting Philando Castile

Newly-released footage shows Philando Castile being fatally shot just 30 seconds into his encounter with the police

Published June 20, 2017 6:48PM (EDT)

FILE - In this July 25, 2016, file photo, a memorial including a photo of Philando Castile is attached to the gate to the governor's residence where protesters demonstrated in St. Paul, Minn. Attorneys for Jeronimo Yanez, the Minnesota police officer accused of fatally shooting Castile say Castile's gun was accessible and that he was reaching for it when he was killed. A memo filed Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, in Ramsey County District Court contradicts prosecutors' claims that St. Anthony Officer Yanez didn't see the weapon and made conflicting statements about it. (AP Photo/Jim Mone, File) (AP)
FILE - In this July 25, 2016, file photo, a memorial including a photo of Philando Castile is attached to the gate to the governor's residence where protesters demonstrated in St. Paul, Minn. Attorneys for Jeronimo Yanez, the Minnesota police officer accused of fatally shooting Castile say Castile's gun was accessible and that he was reaching for it when he was killed. A memo filed Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, in Ramsey County District Court contradicts prosecutors' claims that St. Anthony Officer Yanez didn't see the weapon and made conflicting statements about it. (AP Photo/Jim Mone, File) (AP)

Newly-released video footage shows the encounter between law enforcement and Philando Castile during a traffic stop immediately before Castile was fatally shot seven times, the Washington Post reported.

What appears to be a routine traffic stop spirals out of control within seconds of the officer learning that Castile was in legal possession of a firearm. Previously, the only footage of the incident made public was from Castile's girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, who filmed the incident with her cellphone via Facebook Live just moments after Castile was shot.

"Sir, I have to tell you that I do have a firearm on me," Castile is heard saying in the new video just 30 seconds into the encounter.

Minnesota police officer Jeronimo Yanez replied with "okay," as he shifted his hand towards his gun. "Don't reach for it then," he said. Castile then told the officer that he was not pulling out his firearm.

"Don't pull it out," Yanez said. "Don't pull it out!" he then shouted, pulling his gun from his holster and reaching into the car. "I’m not!" Castile replied, as Yanez fired into the car just seven seconds after learning Castile was legally carrying a gun.

Last week, Yanez was acquitted of all charges by a jury, after which thousands took to the streets of Minnesota to protest the ruling. According to the Post, Castile was among 963 people killed at the hands of law enforcement last year.

"Details from the recording were revealed in court documents and during the trial, but they were not publicly visible in the same way as Reynolds’s viral Facebook footage. The dash-cam video does not clearly show Castile’s movements inside the car," the Post reported. Seconds after the shooting, Castile's four-year-old daughter exits the car.


By Charlie May

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Black Lives Matter Diamond Reynolds Jeronimo Yanez Officer Yanez Philando Castile