North Carolina deputy sheriff faces charges after leading armed white mob to Black teen’s home

A sheriff’s deputy in southern North Carolina is facing charges after leading a throng of armed white people to the home of a Black teenager last week in a case of mistaken identity.

Jordan Kita, who was a detention officer in the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office at the time of the incident, is said to have led the charge of a large group on May 3 in bordering Pender County to confront Dameon Shepard, a high school senior at Laney High School in Wilmington, N.C., over a missing girl.

A girl that Shepard does not know, the News & Observer reports. The missing girl, 15-year-old Lekayda Kempisty, has since been found safe. Kita and the vigilantes were looking for someone named Josiah.

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Shepard was playing video games at home when he answered the door that Sunday and was met by the Kita clan. When the teenager tried to close the door, Kita, armed with an assault rifle, reportedly put his foot in the way.

Shepard pleaded with Kita and the mob, explaining that Josiah had previously lived next door. The situation frightened the son and awoke his mother, Monica Shepard, who told the crowd to leave.

The Shepards are one of only two Black families living in the neighborhood, according to the Port City Daily.

“What if he was the person they were looking for or what if I was not home? What would’ve happened,” Monica Shepard said in an interview with local TV station WECT. “I don’t want to have that conversation. I don’t want him to be a statistic. It’s scary.”

Kita has since been fired.

New Hanover and Pender County District Attorney Ben David on Friday announced charges against Kita of forcible trespassing, misdemeanor breaking or entering and willful failure to discharge duties.

READ MORE: Mom of bystander punched by cop in viral arrest says son is hospitalized

He stated in a press conference that Kita is accused of going to the Shepard’s home “while armed and in uniform in a county where he was not dully sworn in and in furtherance of personal — not law enforcement — purposes.”

The Shepards are also preparing to file a civil suit, which is being prepped by James W. Lea.

“We obviously cannot have armed groups of citizens patrolling the streets of Pender County or New Hanover County terrorizing innocent families,” stated Lea.

The post North Carolina deputy sheriff faces charges after leading armed white mob to Black teen’s home appeared first on TheGrio.

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Quibi Releases Trailer For Donald Sterling Scandal Docuseries

Quibi, a recently launched subscription-based streaming platform, has released its trailer for the docuseries Blackballed.

Blackballed is a powerful series that examines the cultural context of race in America through the lens of NBA owner Donald Sterling’s expulsion from the league. The series highlights the five days during the 2014 NBA playoffs, when Doc Rivers, Chris Paul, DeAndre Jordan, and the Los Angeles Clippers protested the team’s owner Sterling.

Sterling was recorded by his then-girlfriend V. Stiviano saying he didn’t want her bringing black people to Clippers games, including former Lakers guard Magic Johnson. At the time, the Clippers were a team with mostly African American players.

“This powerful story, which portrays a defining moment in the history of the NBA, shines a spotlight on a cultural divide that has affected our country for decades,” Will Packer, executive producer of the series, said in a statement. “We are very excited that Blackballed will be available to audiences on Quibi, one of the most innovative entertainment content platforms in the industry.”

After hearing the recording themselves, players and coaches led an unprecedented movement to hold the league accountable including threatening to boycott the rest of the season.

The docuseries features interviews from Los Angeles Clippers players Paul, Jordan, and JJ Redick, as well as Clippers head coach Rivers, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, sportswriter Jemele Hill, and others.

League commissioner Silver was on the job for less than three months before being forced into the spotlight. Sliver, knowing that a less than stellar punishment could ruin the league, slapped Sterling with a lifetime ban from the NBA and forced him to sell the team.

Steve Ballmer, a former Microsoft executive and CEO, bought the team from Sterling for $2 billion.

Packer, an African American producer whose movies include Ride Along 2, No Good Deed, and Think Like a Man Too, produced the series. Blackballed was picked up by Quibi last November.

Quibi is a short-form mobile video platform headquartered in Los Angeles and launched in April.

from Black Enterprise https://ift.tt/2AfXr8V

Quibi Releases Trailer For Donald Sterling Scandal Docuseries

Quibi, a recently launched subscription-based streaming platform, has released its trailer for the docuseries Blackballed.

Blackballed is a powerful series that examines the cultural context of race in America through the lens of NBA owner Donald Sterling’s expulsion from the league. The series highlights the five days during the 2014 NBA playoffs, when Doc Rivers, Chris Paul, DeAndre Jordan, and the Los Angeles Clippers protested the team’s owner Sterling.

Sterling was recorded by his then-girlfriend V. Stiviano saying he didn’t want her bringing black people to Clippers games, including former Lakers guard Magic Johnson. At the time, the Clippers were a team with mostly African American players.

“This powerful story, which portrays a defining moment in the history of the NBA, shines a spotlight on a cultural divide that has affected our country for decades,” Will Packer, executive producer of the series, said in a statement. “We are very excited that Blackballed will be available to audiences on Quibi, one of the most innovative entertainment content platforms in the industry.”

After hearing the recording themselves, players and coaches led an unprecedented movement to hold the league accountable including threatening to boycott the rest of the season.

The docuseries features interviews from Los Angeles Clippers players Paul, Jordan, and JJ Redick, as well as Clippers head coach Rivers, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, sportswriter Jemele Hill, and others.

League commissioner Silver was on the job for less than three months before being forced into the spotlight. Sliver, knowing that a less than stellar punishment could ruin the league, slapped Sterling with a lifetime ban from the NBA and forced him to sell the team.

Steve Ballmer, a former Microsoft executive and CEO, bought the team from Sterling for $2 billion.

Packer, an African American producer whose movies include Ride Along 2, No Good Deed, and Think Like a Man Too, produced the series. Blackballed was picked up by Quibi last November.

Quibi is a short-form mobile video platform headquartered in Los Angeles and launched in April.

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