Activists seek release of La’Mello Parker shooting video, records

The Mississippi Alliance for Public Safety is seeking the release of records including all body camera and dash cam footage of the 2021 shooting death of 3-month-old La’Mello Parker, activists announced at a press conference this week outside the Harrison County Courthouse in Gulfport.

In 2021, La’Mello’s father, Eric Smith, took the baby hostage after killing his mother and her nephew. During a police chase on Interstate 10, law enforcement officers fired 20 rounds into the car, killing both Smith and La’Mello.

Authorities previously refused to release body camera footage and other records on the grounds that they were investigative material under review by a Harrison County grand jury, said Leo Carney of American Descendants of Slavery Mississippi.

Now that the grand jury has reached a decision to clear the officers of wrongdoing, the activists say the materials should no longer be exempt from the public record.

Lea Campbell, an activist with the Mississippi Rising Coalition, submitted a request for public records including the Harrison County officers’ body and dash cam footage of the shooting; radio recordings and transcripts of communications between law enforcement; all evidence provided to the Harrison County grand jury; disciplinary records of the officers involved with the shooting; and the Harrison County written policies and procedures regarding the chain of command in hostage situations.

The records request was filed separately with the city of Gulfport, Harrison County, and the Mississippi Department of Public Safety.

Activists have been seeking more transparency and accountability from police regarding the shooting.

“I want to know the name of the officer who shot La’Mello. I think we deserve to know that. Is he or she still on patrol duty? I definitely think we need to know that,” said Melissa Garriga, another activist with Mississippi Rising, at the press conference.

Campbell said DPS Commissioner Sean Tindell’s public reaction to the grand jury decision, in which he said, “La’Mello Parker’s life was needlessly taken as a direct result of the actions of Eric Smith,” was “unprofessional and immoral.”

Campbell said Tindell’s statement was “false,” arguing that “La’mello was killed by one person — the officer who shot him.”