Thread by @ashtonpittman

NEW: After Marc Davis, a Black man, called 911 to report he'd been in a car crash, a responding police officer shot Davis three times, killing him.

Petal's Chamber of Commerce just declared that officer, Aaron Jernigan, Petal's "2020 Officer of the Year." mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

Petal Mayor Hal Marx is a director with the Petal Chamber of Commerce that gave Officer Jernigan the award.

Last year, Marx drew hundreds of #BlackLivesMatter protesters after mocking George Floyd's death: “If you say you can’t breathe, you’re breathing." mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

Petal Mayor Hal Marx's remarks about George Floyd and the claim that George Floyd died of an overdose drew renewed attention to Marc Davis' death.

State investigators and a federal judge ruled the shooting "justified," but Davis' family challenged that. mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

“Good afternoon. My name is Catherine Davis. I am the mother of the late Marc Davis,” she told protestors in Petal, Mississippi. “My son was killed on your streets. My son was murdered on your streets."

MORE: mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

After the 2017 shooting, Officer Jernigan and witnesses claimed Davis tried to take his weapon.

Others provided conflicting accounts of what happened that day, though, including a witness who spoke to @MSFreePress, saying she'd never spoken to police. mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

"Knowing Mr. Davis had full intentions of trying to gain control of my firearm and fearing for my life and the lives and safety of the bystanders around me, I fired three shots into Mr. Davis," Officer Jernigan said in a police statement after the shooting.mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

"This is his youngest baby at his funeral. We were getting ready to leave the grave site. She didn’t want to go. She kept saying, ‘Granny.’ She wanted her dad. She knew he was in that box. She wanted him out," said Catherine Davis. mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

Catherine Davis: “There needs to be a federal task force that will look immediately (into police shootings), not wait until local authorities have had the opportunity to put their dirty hands in something." mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

"They say they’re sorry for what happened to George Floyd. Well, get off your sorry behind and go into your office and write some legislation,” Catherine Davis said, referring to members of Congress. mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

Catherine Davis to George Floyd's family last May:

“Mr. Floyd, to your family, I hate to admit this, but I know your pain. I know your pain. And I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. I wouldn’t wish it on Mr. Marx and his family.” mississippifreepress.org/9455/petal-off…

Background: "A Petal Police Officer Killed Marc Davis In 2017. His Family Is Still Demanding Justice." mississippifreepress.org/3431/a-petal-p…

More background: "Petal Mayor Marx’s Tweets About George Floyd Draw Calls to Resign, Prompting City Meeting Tonight" mississippifreepress.org/3381/petal-may…

If you support people-centered journalism that holds power to account, please follow @MSFreePress and consider a one-time or recurring donation to help us grow paywall-free, non-profit journalism in the Mississippi—where it's desperately needed: mfp.ms/donate

85% of residents in the majority Black college city of Hattiesburg voted to remove Forrest Cty's Confederate statue which is near a memorial to a slain voting rights activist.

It remains after Petal & other parts of the county voted for H'burg to keep it.
mississippifreepress.org/6769/forrest-c…