Charleston activist leader Justin Hunt was on the bullhorn outside state Solicitor Scarlett Wilson’s Broad Street office Monday when he was told the two deputies involved in the death of Jamal Sutherland had been fired.
“I don’t even call this justice,” Hunt said, after receiving word, continuing his speech urging charges be pressed against the two deputies.
Hunt and leaders of a coalition of Black Lives Matter and social justice groups statewide marched with as many as 100 protesters from Marion Square to Wilson’s office with a list of demands stemming from Sutherland’s Jan. 5 death at the Charleston County jail.
The two fired deputies, Lindsay Fickett and Brian Houle, had been on administrative duty since returning to duty after fatal incident.
Sutherland died after the deputies repeatedly used a Taser and stun gun in an attempt to detain him for a bond hearing. Body-worn camera footage released last week showed a deputy putting their knee on Sutherland’s back as he yelled, “I can’t breathe,” shortly before he became unresponsive.
Coalition groups gathered earlier Monday to unveil a list of demands for local law enforcement, which include that the deputies are fired, arrested and charged. The groups also want an independent investigation of the incident and independent oversight bodies created to advocate for mental-health resources and local law enforcement accountability.
Charleston County Sheriff Kristin Graziano said in a statement just before 5 p.m. Monday afternoon that she made the decision to fire the deputies four months after the incident in an effort to eliminate “even the perception of an impairment” at the county jail. Graziano won an upset election victory last year after campaigning on transparency and accountability. She took over operation of the jail when she was sworn in as sheriff the same day Sutherland was booked into the Al Cannon Detention Center.
“Just enough is never enough,” protesters chanted, gathered outside the Charleston County Courthouse at the corner of Meeting and Broad streets, pushing for state charges against the deputies.
In a May 11 statement, Wilson said she expects by the end of June to have the information she needs to decide whether to charge individuals involved in Sutherland’s death.
Hanahan Democratic state Rep. J.A. Moore, whose sister was killed at Emanuel AME Church in 2015, said he was marching because he hoped the march’s younger leaders would be inspired to continue to push for reform.
“Six years ago, this was me,” Moore said. “Horrific things happened to my family, and I wanted change to happen.”
Moore ran for state House in 2018, defeating an incumbent Republican. Along with Rep. Marvin Pendarvis, D-North Charleston, Moore has filed three bills directly in response to Sutherland’s death, including to regulate the use of stun guns and Tasers by law enforcement.
“Nobody wants to see another Jamal Sutherland,” he told the City Paper. “I’m going to do my part to listen to the voices of these young folks.”
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