Demands for justice and police transparency rang out between the Lincoln Memorial and Reflecting Pool Sunday afternoon, exactly two years after 25-year-old Bijan Ghaisar of McLean, Virginia, was fatally wounded during a traffic stop after a fender bender and chase along the GW Parkway.
After the U.S. Justice Department announced it would not pursue federal civil rights charges against the two Park Police officers involved in the shooting, Ghaisar’s family received a letter saying an investigation could not conclusively determine whether the officers involved used unreasonable force.
But family members and lawmakers from Virginia and D.C. still want answers 鈥� including on what led the officers to open fire on Ghaisar.
鈥淭his is not over,鈥� said Negeen Ghaisar, Bijan鈥檚 sister. 鈥淲e are just getting started.”
Her husband and other speakers reflected that refrain throughout Sunday鈥檚 rally amid cheers and statements punctuated with the sound of bucket drums.
Bijan Ghaisar was shot several times by two U.S. Park Police officers during a traffic stop and a chase after a Nov. 2017 fender-bender.
鈥淲e are enraged, but not surprised,鈥� said Kouros Emami, Bijan鈥檚 brother-in-law, reacting to the decision.
鈥淰irginia can still charge them with murder. The Park Police can still fire them,鈥� Negeen said to the crowd.
Several federal and state lawmakers attended the rally in support of the family, including D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes-Norton, Virginia Reps. Don Beyer and Jennifer Wexton and State Senator Scott Surovell who told the gathering he lives two blocks from where Ghaisar was gunned down.
鈥淢y neighborhood is terrified. I represent 50,000 people who live along the Potomac River, and when they see the U.S. Park Police, they鈥檙e not comforted, they鈥檙e terrified,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t took two years to give no answer.”
鈥淚 just want you to think for a second, if it was Officer Vinyard or Amaya that got shot, either one of them that got shot, not even killed, just shot that night, would it take two years to get them justice?” Surovell asked. He was met with resounding shouts of 鈥渘o鈥� rippling through the crowd.
Wexton is part of a trio of federal lawmakers that sent a letter calling on the U.S. Park Police to begin an internal investigation into Ghaisar鈥檚 death.
鈥淚t鈥檚 clear that they are not providing any information and I think that the family and the American people deserve and need this information,鈥� Wexton told 蜜桃视频app after the rally.
Wexton, Beyer and Holmes-Norton are asking for a written response by Dec. 5 addressing whether the requested investigation will proceed, when it’s expected to conclude, how wide a scope it鈥檒l cover, and what the duty status of the officers will be during the investigation.
Kelly Ghaisar, Bijan鈥檚 mother read part of the letter that explained the Justice Department鈥檚 reasons for not charging the officers, followed by her interpretation of Thursday鈥檚 news:
鈥淭hey cannot prosecute because they are immune to kill you with no explanation whatsoever.鈥�
