Elizabeth City march planned to mark 1 year since shooting death of Andrew Brown Jr.

Elizabeth City activists and community members will march Saturday to mark the one-year anniversary of the fatal shooting of Andrew Brown Jr. as his family seeks justice against the deputies who shot him.

The Brown family will join community leaders and activists for a march, vigil and news conference to continue calls for police accountability, justice, and transparency. The event will begin at 11 a.m. at the at the K.E. White Graduate Center, located at 1704 Weeksville Road in Elizabeth City. Led by the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP and Forward Justice, organizers expect the march to draw hundreds.

Brown, a 42-year-old Black man, was fatally shot April 21, 2021 by a team of deputies from Pasquotank and Dare counties who arrived at his home with warrants to arrest him and search his property. Deputies shot Brown, who was sitting in his car in the driveway, five times as he tried to drive away from his home. He died at the scene.

Brown’s death stoked racial tensions in Elizabeth City that persisted into the summer. Following the shooting, protesters held peaceful rallies and marched in the streets of Elizabeth City. The city and Pasquotank County imposed a curfew for a few days, resulting in a handful of arrests.

While seven deputies were placed on administrative leave for their part in the shooting death, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation determined the shooting was justified. No charges were filed against any of the deputies involved.

“Since Brown’s tragic execution on April 21, 2021, the Elizabeth City and Pasquotank County community continue to have many unanswered questions, a lack of trust in official leadership, and are still seeking accountability,” wrote organizers in a news release announcing Saturday’s march.

Speakers at Saturday’s event will include Brown’s family, the president of the North Carolina NAACP, and representatives from Black Voters Matter, Advance North Carolina, Emancipate North Carolina and Forward Justice.

In July 2021, Brown’s seven children filed a federal lawsuit seeking $30 million in damages against the sheriff’s office deputies involved in the fatal shooting for using unlawful and deadly force against him. The civil case is still pending.

Brown was unarmed and sitting in his car in his driveway, with his cell phone up to his ear when the team of deputies got there, the lawsuit said. Several officers charged up to the car and confronted Brown, pointing assault rifles and shouting at him, the lawsuit said.

Brown was “startled and afraid” and attempted to escape by first backing up, then driving to the left to avoid hitting any officers, the complaint said. The officers began firing as he pulled away and continued to shoot after Brown was a “considerable distance away,” the lawsuit said.

Caitlyn Burchett, 727-267-6059, caitlyn.burchett@virginiamedia.com