City officials respond after hundreds attend vigil for Steve Perkins
Oct. 7—An emotionally charged vigil for Stephen Clay Perkins, who was shot and killed by Decatur police last week, saw hundreds in attendance and prompted a response from city officials Friday asking protesters to remain nonviolent.
On Friday evening, hundreds of protesters marched from City Hall, down Lee Street and along Bank Street, carrying signs and chanting. Dozens of police vehicles tracked the crowd's movements but kept at a distance, and law enforcement officers lined the Morgan County Courthouse balcony along Lee Street. As of 7 p.m., there were no reports of violence.
Perkins, who was Black, was shot and killed by Decatur police Sept. 29 after police said he brandished a gun toward officers when they accompanied a tow truck driver to Perkins' residence. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency has taken over the investigation.
In a brief speech at the vigil, civil rights lawyer and attorney for the Perkins family Lee Merritt said that our nation's government derives its power from the consent of the people.
"If you're quiet, and you don't say anything, that means you consent," he told a crowd that city officials estimated was 600 to 700 people. There were sporadic nods and murmurs of agreement in the audience.
"If you don't get into these streets, that means you consent," Merritt said with increased volume, his syllables punctuated each time his right hand struck the podium. The response from the audience was slightly louder.
"If you don't burn something down, that must mean you consent!" Merritt yelled into the mic. The energy in the crowd became electric. They cheered and shouted. They said they wanted justice.
City officials responded in an 11 a.m. press conference on Friday. Mayor Tab Bowling, Decatur police Chief Todd Pinion, Fire Chief Tracy Thornton, and retired Decatur Youth Services director Bruce Jones, who now works with Decatur City Schools, spoke from behind a plastic table in a seventh-floor briefing room at City Hall.
Bowling opened remarks by emphasizing the importance of allowing ALEA's investigation to unfold. He said he appreciated residents showing up to support the Perkins family and that the vigil had a wonderful turnout.
"The attorney made some statements that were very concerning to us," he said. "We don't think our residents want to do things to damage the city that they helped build."
The other three speakers made similar comments. Pinion said he's committed to transparency and accountability. He also said he's praying for the Perkins family and asked for prayers for his police officers.
Thornton said "we all heard a message that made us all uncomfortable."
Jones, who was the only Black speaker, said he's very emotional about the situation as he personally knew Perkins.
"But being angry at my brother or sister who looks different from me because of what happened won't bring Steve back," he said. "Let's make sure we take care of our city. Knowing Steve, he wouldn't want the violence. He wasn't a violent person. He didn't have any animosity toward the Police Department."
The group took questions from local media after their prepared statements. Pinion said he met with some Perkins family members on Tuesday. When questioned if he had considered asking ALEA to share bodycam video with Perkins' immediately family, he said he could ask them anything, but that it's ultimately their investigation.
"I've said that multiple times — I don't want to do anything to interfere with their investigation," he said. — Vigil
The crowd of hundreds gathered in front of the Decatur Police Department on Thursday night grew silent at the arrival of Steve Perkins' wife and two daughters. Flanked by Merritt, Catrela Perkins walked hand-in-hand with her children past a tangle of bodies, umbrellas and flashlights. Nicholas Perkins, Steve Perkins' older brother, placed his hand on her shoulder in support as they approached the threshold steps.
People occupied every inch of the lawn of City Hall, which houses the Police Department. Some stood in the parking lot, others in the street. They were both Black and white, old and young. Most were from Decatur. Some were from Hillsboro, where Steve Perkins grew up and has family. Some came from as far away as Ohio.
At least one drone circled the crowd, its light briefly visible in the dark like a seasonal firefly. Two police officers watched the event from the rooftop of City Hall.
"I think it's important to come out here for the community's sake," said Decatur resident Scott Williams while waiting for the vigil to begin. "Everybody's already arguing back and forth on Facebook or whatever. It's better just to come together as one and see what happens."
Stephanie Allen, a history professor at Alabama A&M, attended the vigil with her elderly father.
"I came out here tonight because this could've been my nephew," she said. "This could've been my father. It's bigger than Steve Perkins. This is George Floyd, this is Philando Castile. This happens too often, and I think our society has become numb to it at this point.
"The same systemic racism that Black people have dealt with since the Reconstruction Era is still present today. At some point it has to stop. At some point we have to have allies, just like the LGBTQ community has allies."
In front of a banner spanning the width of the City Hall building's glass entrance labeled "#IAmStevePerkins," the Perkins family took their seats on folding chairs draped in white cloth. Each member held a rose. To the right of the entrance stood a makeshift shrine for Steve Perkins: above a semicircle of votive candles and an arrangement of white and red roses was the man's image.
Nicholas Perkins stood at the podium and made a brief speech. His eyes were wet, and emotion threatened to choke his words. He said there's nothing like a big brother's love.
"You have no idea how it feels to be born a protector and that job is taken away from you unjustly and unwarranted," he said. "We want accountability. We want responsibility. We want change."
When he finished speaking, he let out an anguished scream. A few people in the crowd encouraged him. Let it out, they said. And he did.
Between speakers, organizers led various call-and-response chants demanding justice for Perkins. After Perkins' sister-in-law, Angela Perkins, led the gathering by singing a psalm from the podium, it was Merritt's turn.
"I saw a little girl breaking down on the way up here, upset about what happened to Steve," he opened. He said he's roughly the same age as Perkins and, like Perkins, has children who "are in fear every day, like a lot of kids in our community, that their dad may not come home because of the constant threat on our lives."
Merritt took aim at Morgan County District Attorney Scott Anderson and said he met with him and asked why no arrests have been made yet. Merritt said he's been requesting the public to repeatedly contact the DA's office.
"I'll keep it simple: An arrest should've been made last Friday," he said. "All the officers should be fired from their positions. The person responsible for the termination is the DPD. Again, it could've happened already. We will not allow these officers to continue to patrol this community.
"We need vigorous prosecution by Mr. Anderson, and if he doesn't have the capacity to do it then step aside. I asked Mr. Anderson respectfully to give us a timeline, and he said because he's backlogged, he can't do that. Get out of the way. Step aside, recuse yourself, ask for a special prosecutor."
On Friday, Anderson said his meeting with Merritt and Catrela Perkins was cordial with no harsh words spoken by either side.
"His account of it as he spoke a few hours later at City Hall was inaccurate," he said. "That's unfortunate."
Merritt went on to say that police officers did what they were trained to do the night Perkins was killed.
"(Policing) was designed to kill and incarcerate and deprive us of our property rights," he said. "The system is not broken but it needs to be broken. And you all need to break it."
At the conclusion of the vigil, an organizer encouraged the audience to return to the Police Department at 5:30 p.m. Friday to resume protests.
Afterward, several in attendance said they felt unified in their quest for accountability and change.
"The unity is here, but the system will wait you out," said Decatur resident and father to three daughters, Patrick Smith. "We don't want nothing crazy to go on, but some actions need to be taken."
Several businesses announced early closures Friday in anticipation of the protests. The managing director of the Princess Theatre, Mindy Brubaker, said she explained the circumstances to their scheduled performers and gave them the option to cancel. They elected to cancel.
"If what happened (Thursday) night is any indication, it was incredibly peaceful and that is what we expect (Friday night)," she said. "We're just trying to be more safe than sorry. And we just don't want to have a festive atmosphere while there's mourning going on."
The sounds of the protests echoed across downtown Decatur on Friday night, but as of 6:30 p.m. there were no signs of violence.
Friday afternoon, ALEA issued an updated press release on the officer-involved shooting. It's largely identical to their statement a week ago, which echoes DPD's claim that Perkins brandished his weapon toward officers, and says Perkins was found to be armed with a handgun equipped with a light.
The statement asks for patience and adds that Perkins' body has been sent to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences for an autopsy:
"On behalf of Decatur Police Chief Todd Pinion and ALEA Secretary Hal Taylor, we continue to ask for everyone's patience as ALEA's SBI conducts what must be a very thorough and methodical investigation. All evidence is currently being reviewed, however, if anyone has any information to share, please call SBI's confidential tipline at 1-800-392-8011 or email at sbi.investigations@alea.gov."
— david.gambino@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2438.
