Niani Finlayson: Bodycam footage shows deputy shooting woman who called 911 in front of her daughter
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) released body-camera footage on Friday, December 29, of an officer fatally shooting 27-year-old Niani Finlayson, who had called 911 for help when a man wouldn't "get out of [her] house."
The body-cam footage from the December 4 encounter showed that Deputy Ty Shelton shot Finlayson four times within roughly three seconds of entering her home.
What happened to Niani Finlayson?
Last week, a killing in Lancaster, a community in north Los Angeles County shocked the nation. Civil rights activists questioned why the deputies used deadly force against a woman who was being abused and had called for their help, instead of attempting to defuse the situation.
The LASD released audio from the 911 call, which captured Finlayson telling the emergency dispatcher, “He won’t get out of my house… He will not leave me alone… I need the police here right now,” with unintelligible sounds in the background.
She was heard screaming and yelling at a man to stop touching her. According to her family's attorney, the man was once her boyfriend. Two deputies' body cam footage revealed that they could hear a woman screaming from inside the flat when they first arrived outside.
The deputies attempted to kick the door open, prompting Finlayson to open it. Finlayson's daughter, nine, was standing next to her mother when she opened the door. The 37-year-old was holding a kitchen knife and claimed, "I'm gonna stab him because" he had hurt her daughter.
Finlayson then went towards the man, prompting the police to enter the house behind her. As the police entered the house, the nine-year-old girl pointed to the man, shouting, “He pushed me, he choked me, he punched me.”
Finlayson and her ex-boyfriend moved to the other end of the house while a female constable came in first. Shelton entered next, and within seconds, he fired four rounds at Finlayson. At about 6.18 pm, Shelton shot Finlayson with her daughter watching. When he fired the rounds, the mother fell to the ground and the daughter raced into the kitchen.
The ex screamed, "No, no, why did you shoot?” The LASD did not release footage of the aftermath. The video showed that Shelton had entered with a taser in one hand and a firearm in the other.
However, it did not seem like he or the two other deputies at the scene used any “less lethal” weapons or other tactics to de-escalate the situation before Shelton shot Finlayson multiple times.
Niani Finlayson was declared dead
The LASD said in a statement that Finlayson was later taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Her unidentified ex turned "resistive," according to the LASD, and was taken into custody for allegedly abusing children and assaulting a police officer.
However, he was later released from custody while an investigation was conducted. According to Finlayson's family, he hurt her and her daughter.
This was not Shelton’s first fatal shooting. On June 11, 2020, the deputy killed 61-year-old Michael Thomas, also while responding to a call for potential domestic violence, per LAPD.
Although Thomas's girlfriend later claimed that she and Thomas had been fighting verbally and that Thomas had attempted to prevent the police from entering his house, the killing was not captured on camera.
His relatives claimed that after George Floyd's murder, which had occurred just weeks before the incident, Thomas had been afraid that the police would kill him. Shelton shot Thomas in the chest even though he was unarmed. He did not face any charges.
According to The Guardian, Finlayson's relatives filed a claim against the LASD and LA County last week.
Finlayson’s nine-year-old daughter, Xaisha, who was present during the shooting and could be seen in the footage, told reporters, “She was my best friend. She was always there for me. It’s very unbelievable that she’s gone and not coming back. I miss my mom.”
Tracie Hall, Finlayson’s mother, revealed that her daughter had been working to become a nurse and an in-home care service worker. She called for Shelton to be fired and prosecuted, stating, “He should not be allowed to roam free and continue to have a job.”
Niani Finlayson was a mother of two
According to a GoFundMe started in Finlayson's memory, she also has a 2-year-old daughter named Xyla.
The GoFundMe also states, "She was involved in a domestic violence altercation fighting for her life with a man named James last name possibly Martin)."
Her service will be held on January 30, 2024.
