Father of Jamar Clark: Blevins shooting feels like deja vu

MINNEAPOLIS (KMSP) - For one Minneapolis family, the Thurman Blevins shooting has brought back some very painful memories.

Nearly three years ago, Jamar Clark was shot and killed by Minneapolis police officers and no charges were filed in that case as well. If there's anyone who knows what the family of Thurman Blevins is going through these days, it’s James Clark.

"It’s sad and it hurts and it’s going to keep on hurting," said Clark.

Clark says the decision not to press charges against the officers involved in the shooting death of Blevins feels like deja vu.

"It’s the same thing that happened to my son,” said Clark. “Nobody getting charged with nothing."

Clark's son Jamar was shot and killed by police after he got into an altercation with paramedics, who were trying to treat his ex-girlfriend outside a birthday party in north Minneapolis nearly three years ago. His death prompted protests outside the Fourth Precinct for nearly three weeks. Ultimately, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman declined to press charges against the officers involved in his death.

"Anger, frustration,” said Clark. “You feel like just doing something wrong yourself. You know you can't do that. So, you just hold yourself."

Since then, Minneapolis has a new police chief who is African-American and body cameras to help improve the department's transparency and accountability. Clark, however, says even though it only took Freeman five weeks instead of four months to make a charging decision in Blevins case, he felt the result was more of the same.

"They just come up with the same old thing,” said Clark. “Every time they kill a black person. I was scared for my life. I was scared for my partner's life. What about the man who was killed? Don't you think he was scared for his life?"

Clark says not a day goes by that he doesn't think about his son. He prays for the day police shootings, like the one that ended Jamar's life, come to an end as well.

"It’s just sad the system is the way it is,” said Clark. “It's not fair especially for black people."

Clark's family filed a civil suit against officers Dustin Schwarze and Mark Riggenberg, accusing them of violating Jamar's rights. James Clark says that case has yet to be settled.