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The Death of Darrius Stewart { 15 images } Created 16 Dec 2015

The Death of Darrius Stewart
by Yalonda M. James
The Commercial Appeal

“I can’t breathe” were a few of Darrius Stewart’s last words during a fatal encounter with Memphis police officer Connor Schilling on July 17 on church grounds.

I. Can’t. Breathe.

A year earlier to the day, Eric Garner uttered those exact words through a chokehold while being arrested by officers from the New York Police Department.

Their deaths have added fuel to a new civil rights movement called Black Lives Matter.

“Too often young black lives are being sacrificed by the police of this nation,” Tami Sawyer, a Memphis activist, said at Stewart’s funeral in August.

“People want you to say ‘All Lives Matter’ and erase the fact that we are ignored in this country. ... If we can’t say ‘Black Lives Matter,’ who can?” Sawyer asked.

As of Dec. 17, 944 people have been shot and killed by police, according to The Washington Post. Nineteen of those people were from Tennessee. Nationally, 32 of them were unarmed and black, including Stewart, who was shot by Schilling as they fought after a traffic stop.

“We can’t have this unchecked genocide continue without the protections of law,” said Keith Norman, pastor at First Baptist-Broad and president of the NAACP Memphis Branch. “I have two young African-American sons and daughters, two sons and two daughters, and I don’t want this to occur in my own family, but when it occurs in any family it occurs in my family.”

Since the recent shooting deaths across the country of Stewart, Michael Brown, Rekia Boyd, Tamir Rice, Aiyana Stanley-Jones, Laquon McDonald, Samuel DuBose, and many others — tensions are high in the black community.

In the aftermath of Stewart’s fatal shooting, Stewart’s family and friends, activists associated with the Black Lives Matter movement and local pastors have held numerous protests and vigils calling for justice and expressing dissatisfaction with local authority.

“People are hurting out here,” Rev. Earle Fisher said during a vigil a week after Stewart’s death. “He didn’t have to die. ... Don’t let next week come around and you forgot who Darrius Stewart is. Don’t let next month come around and you forgot who Darrius Stewart is.”
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  • July 24, 2015 - Tye Williams held an American flag with the words "Black Lives Matter" written on it during a vigil honoring Darrius Stewart at New Direction Youth Campus in Hickory Hill. Stewart, 19, was fatally shot by Memphis police officer Connor Schilling, 26, after a traffic stop. About 200 people gathered with prayer and a moment of silence. They sang “Amazing Grace” and marched within a park before rallying along Winchester. They chanted, “These killer cops have got to go,” “Black Lives Matter,” “No racist police” and “Jail killer cops.” (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • November 10, 2015 - Ashley Cathey, 26, cries while attending a Justice for Darrius protest at the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center Tuesday. Darrius Stewart, 19, was fatally shot by Memphis police officer Connor Schilling after a traffic stop in Hickory Hill in July. About 100 people gathered for the event after a grand jury declined to indict Schilling in the shooting death. An attorney for Stewart's father, Henry Williams, filed a complaint to the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division against Schilling and the city of Memphis. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • July 21, 2015 - Bennett Foster (center), an organizer with Mid-South Peace & Justice Center, bows his head in prayer during a vigil honoring Darrius Stewart at New Direction Youth Campus in Hickory Hill. Stewart, 19, was fatally shot by Memphis police officer Connor Schilling, 26, after a traffic stop on July 17. <br />
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About 150 people gathered at Winchester near Pine Tree, where candles were lit spelling his name and some in the crowd wore shirts reading “#CuffEmDontShoot.”<br />
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“I want the people of Memphis to stand up,” said Stewart’s aunt, Teri Stewart. “Everybody has a Darrius Stewart.” (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • August 8, 2015 - Jarquice Winton is carried away by ushers after viewing his friend's, Darrius Stewart, body during a funeral service at Greater Pentecostal Temple Church of God in Christ in Greenwood, MS. Stewart, 19, was fatally shot three weeks prior by Memphis police officer Connor Schilling after a traffic stop in Hickory Hill. “Too often young black lives are being sacrificed by the police of this nation,” Tami Sawyer, a Memphis activist, said, encouraging everyone present to say “no more.” “People want you to say ‘All Lives Matter’ and erase the fact that we are ignored in this country. ... If we can’t say ‘Black Lives Matter,’ who can?” she asked. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • September 9, 2015 - A Memphis activist participates in a die-in demonstration while holding the name of someone killed by Memphis police during an event at the Brooks Museum of Art. After a few minutes, the small group of protestors exited the facility chanting, "Black Lives Matter."<br />
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As of December 16, 942 people have been shot and killed by police, according to The Washington Post. Nineteen of those persons were from Tennessee. Nationally, 32 of them were unarmed and black, including Stewart, a 19-year-old man from Memphis, who was killed by Memphis police officer Connor Schilling following a traffic stop in Hickory Hill.  (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • August 20, 2015 - A teddy bear rests near the site where Darrius Stewart, 19, was fatally shot on July 17 by Memphis police officer Connor Schilling at 5777 Winchester Road. "I'm really lost," Henry Williams, Stewart's father, said. "He lost his life for nothing." (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • August 10, 2015 — A man who identified himself only as a distant cousin of Nathan Bedford Forrest, holds cleaning spray as Rev. Michael Morris (right), of Holy Ghost Ministry, pressure washes a “Black Lives Matter” message off Forrest’s statue at Health Sciences Park in Memphis. Two days after Darrius Stewart was buried in Greenwood, Miss., someone defaced the statue and gravesite of the former Confederate general, who was also a slave trader and the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. Several people invested a few hours cleaning it. Stewart, a 19-year-old black man, was fatally shot on July 17 by white Memphis police officer Connor Schilling after a traffic stop in Hickory Hill. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • November 3, 2015 - Dr. Andre E. Johnson, a pastor at Gifts of Life Ministries, the Urban Oasis, prays outside 140 Adams Ave. during a press conference with Henry Williams and his attorneys. Williams is the father of Darrius Stewart, 19, who was fatally shot by Memphis police officer Connor Schilling. With reporters and cameras turned to Williams and the gentleman, Johnson wanted to walk around to "bless this place." Earlier in the day, a grand jury declined to indict Schilling in Stewart's death. Officer Schilling remains off duty. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • November 3, 2015 - Darrius Stewart's father, Henry Williams, turns his face away from the cameras during a press conference with his attorneys at the Shelby County Courthouse at 140 Adams Ave. Tuesday. A grand jury declined to indict Memphis police officer Connor Schilling in the shooting death of Williams's 19-year-old son. Stewart was a passenger in a vehicle that police said was pulled over for a headlight violation on July 17. He was put in the back of a squad car while Schilling ran warrants.<br />
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After Schilling verified the warrants, police said, the officer opened the door to the car to handcuff Stewart. Police said Stewart kicked the door and attacked Schilling, striking him with the handcuffs. Schilling chased him and, according to video, they tussled on the ground. Schilling shot him, and Stewart died of two gunshot wounds. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • July 13, 2016 - Joseph Williams, uncle of Darrius Stewart, holds a baby photo of Stewart during a press conference at The Commercial Appeal in Memphis on Wednesday. Attorneys for the family of Darrius Stewart announced they have filed a $17 million wrongful death lawsuit against former Memphis police director Toney Armstrong and former MPD officer Connor Schilling and the City of Memphis. Stewart was killed during a traffic stop in Hickory Hill on July 17, 2015. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • July 15, 2016 - During a Friday evening vigil honoring her son, Darrius Stewart, Mary Stewart pours green liquid at the spot where she believes Darrius was fatally shot last year at New Direction Christian Church Youth Campus in Hickory Hill. Stewart, 19, was shot twice by Memphis police officer Connor Schilling during a traffic stop on July 17, 2015. Stewart's family announced this week that they have filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Memphis, former police director Toney Armstrong and Schilling. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • July 17, 2016 - Jennifer Cain, 33, raises her fist during a service honoring the life of the late Darrius Stewart on the one-year anniversary of his death at Abyssinian Baptist Church. Stewart, 19, was fatally shot by former Memphis police officer Connor Schilling during a traffic stop in Hickory Hill. Attorneys for the family announced they have filed a $17 million wrongful death lawsuit against former Memphis police director Toney Armstrong, Schilling and the City of Memphis. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • July 17, 2016 - Mary Stewart, mother of the late Darrius Stewart, bows her head during a service at Abyssinian Baptist Church recognizing the one-year anniversary of Darrius's death. Darrius, 19, was fatally shot by former Memphis police officer Connor Schilling during a traffic stop in Hickory Hill. Attorneys for the family announced thru have files a $17 million wrongful death lawsuit against former Memphis police director Toney Armstrong, Schilling and the City of Memphis. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • July 17, 2016 - Trent Jordan, 35, a friend of the late Darrius Stewart visits New Direction Youth Campus where Stewart was fatally shot by former Memphis police officer Connor Schilling one year ago. "It's kind of messed up. I watched him grow and develop," said Jordan, who had known Stewart for fifteen years. "He didn't have a chance to grow up." (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart
  • July 17, 2016 - On the one-year anniversary of Darrius Stewart's death, a pair of sneakers hang on a power line at New Direction Youth Campus in Hickory Hill. Stewart,19, was fatally shot by former Memphis police officer Connor Schilling during a traffic stop. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)
    The Death of Darrius Stewart