Civil rights activists joined family members of a man killed by Dallas police last week demanding the department release unedited videos related to the case and charge and terminate the officers involved in the fatal shooting.
The Next Generation Action Network said on Tuesday that videos released by the police department last week showing the fatal shooting of 30-year-old Kyle Dail were edited to fit a narrative and that police "demonized a victim of police violence" to cover up a breach of protocol.
Dallas Chief of Police Eddie Garcia said during a news conference Friday afternoon that Dail had been observed selling drugs in front of a convenience store on July 27, eluded police on a chase and was fatally shot later that night after he pulled out a gun while being subdued by officers during his arrest.
After the shooting Garcia said Dail was unresponsive and was taken to Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas in critical condition. The Dallas County Medical Examiner said Dail died the following day.
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NGAN said they found several things in the edited police video that were disturbing, including the department highlighting what they said was a gun.
"Transparency is not where you edit a video to fit your narrative," said NGAN's Dominique Alexander.
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Alexander, who founded the community-based activist group, demanded Tuesday that the department release unedited versions of all videos related to the case including the store surveillance video, body cameras worn by officers, and dash cameras and helicopter footage showing the purported chase.
Alexander said Tuesday that, so far, the department has refused to provide them with the raw video. NBC 5 asked for copies of the same videos Tuesday afternoon and the department said they are not being released at this time due to the ongoing criminal investigation.
NGAN is also demanding the officers involved be terminated and charged. On Friday, Dallas police said the officer who fired the fatal shot was still on patrol but was on a three-day leave following the shooting.
Alexander said Dail should have been given an opportunity to surrender rather than officers approaching him from behind and grabbing him as he changed his shirt.
"This situation could have been done totally differently," Alexander said. "They chose to assault Mr. Dail, come to him, pepper spray him, and yet, at the end of the day, fail to even identify that they were even officers after they pepper sprayed him. This young man should be alive."
Civil rights attorney Justin Moore said the arrest was a complete failure of police protocol and that violence created by the officers put themselves and Dail in harm's way. He added that the department was trying to cover up the failure by demonizing a victim of police violence.
Garcia said on Friday Dail resisted arrest and that as officers struggled to get him into custody he pulled a handgun from his pocket and raised it in the air in front of an officer's face. Garcia said Dail's weapon was cocked and loaded with four rounds and that he was a convicted felon with a substantial criminal history who should not have had a gun. He added that police found drugs on Dail and that officers had seen him conduct several hand-to-hand drug deals earlier in the evening.
Moore said edited police videos don't lead to justice but rather a lack of trust in the department and urged police to only release unedited videos going forward.
"We're also asking the DPD when they release these videos to not do it in a biased way because there are long-lasting effects when you release a video that's altered and tainted, that potentially taints a jury pool whether it's in criminal court or civil court," Moore said. "That's a huge problem."
Moore questioned whether what was highlighted in the edited video was a gun since they said police had not provided them with further evidence that what Dail was carrying was a handgun or information that confirmed the department's claim that there were rounds in the revolver. Moore added that what took place before the arrest didn't warrant Dail's death and that even if he had a gun he had been disarmed before the fatal shot was fired.
Moore added that police officers shooting someone simply because that person was armed, in an open carry state like Texas, sets a dangerous precedent.
NBC 5 asked Dallas police if there was a breach of protocol in the arrest and the department said they released on Friday all they can in the investigation up to this point.
Dail's brother, Sarandon Steward, said his brother didn't deserve to die and was a great father with a heart of gold who was also a man of God.
"He would give you the shirt off his back. He'll feed you before he'd feed himself," Steward said.
Tuesday night, dozens of Dail's friends and family members gathered for a vigil at Glendale Park on Ledbetter Drive.
A protest is planned at 7 p.m. on Wednesday in front of Dallas Police Headquarters on Botham Jean Boulevard.
The investigation into the shooting is ongoing and is being led by the Dallas Police Special Investigations Unit. The Dallas County District Attorney's Office is also conducting an independent investigation.
The shooting that took Dail's life is the fourth officer-involved shooting involving a Dallas police officer in 2022.
NBC 5's Maria Guerrero and Meredith Yeomans contributed to this report.
