Jamarcus Dejun Moore, a 28-year-old Black male from Hueytown, Alabama, died on Sunday, June 16, 2019. His death occurred following a high-speed chase that involved multiple police jurisdictions. The pursuit, which lasted for about 20 minutes, ended when a Birmingham police officer, Aric Mitchell, intentionally collided with Moore's vehicle to stop him.
Within moments of exiting his patrol car, Officer Mitchell fired multiple shots through the driver's side window of Moore's car from
several feet away. Moore was struck by the gunfire and was pronounced dead at the scene. A passenger in the vehicle, Samantha Hardin, was also shot and sustained a broken leg.
Initially, Officer Mitchell reported to internal affairs investigators that there had been a physical struggle and that Moore had reached for his gun. However, body camera footage from the incident appeared to contradict this account, showing the officer firing his weapon less than 10 seconds after getting out of his car.
Following the shooting, a federal civil rights lawsuit was filed against Officer Mitchell and the City of Birmingham on behalf of Moore's family and Samantha Hardin. The case went to a federal jury, which found that Officer Aric Mitchell had used excessive force in the fatal shooting of Jamarcus Moore. The jury originally awarded the plaintiffs $4.5 million. This amount was later reduced to $2.75 million by a U.S. District Judge.
Ultimately, the City of Birmingham agreed to a settlement of $750,000 to resolve the lawsuit. The attorney for Moore's family and Hardin stated that the jury's finding of liability against the officer and the city was a form of justice for their clients and represented meaningful accountability.
