Joshua Feast, a Black man in Texas, was shot dead by police
The 22-year-old man was targeted as a person of interest connected to a previous shooting in the area.
A La Marque police officer shot and killed a 22-year-old man on Wednesday (Dec. 9), after investigators say he was a person of interest and possibly connected to recent shootings in the area. The man’s family identified him as Joshua Feast, a Black man, from La Marque, Texas.
La Marque Police Chief Kirk Jackson and Mayor Pro-tem Keith Bell refused to release the age or race of the officer who killed Feast, but the department announced Feast’s race as “African American,” during a press conference Thursday (Dec. 10) morning.
The man was shot on Wednesday night around 11:15 p.m., across the street from his uncle’s house, where he was staying. According to a neighbor, Feast was standing outside near a car while talking to his child’s mother. His uncle spoke to ABC’s Eyewitness News and said that’s when a La Marque police officer driving down the street made a swift U-turn, pulled up, and yelled his nephew’s name. He ran and his uncle said that’s when the officer shot Feast in the back.
“I run to my bedroom window and I heard the officer tell him, ‘Put your hands up where I can see them!’” the neighbor said. “But (Josh) was already shot. After (he) was shot, (the officer) said put your hands where I can see them.” The neighbor also said that the officer offered no help to the man after shooting him: “I came outside and overheard the officer saying, ‘Talk to me, Josh. Talk to me, talk to me.’ As if he sees him fading away without trying to render aid or at least help him.”
The Galveston County Sheriff’s Office will conduct the investigation. La Marque police said the officer who shot Feast is on administrative leave while the investigation happens. “We have reason to believe the individual was armed,” Jackson said of Feast at the press conference. “There were firearms recovered at the scene.” Jackson also said that a police body camera video exists. “Eventually, yes, the body camera video will be released, but it’s part of the investigation and it’s not going to be released at this point,” Jackson said.
Police refused to release information about the officer’s race and name initially, but Click 2 Houston News, identified the officer as Jose Santos, and Attorney Ben Crump also shared the officer’s name on Twitter. “Joshua Feast was fatally shot in the BACK by La Marque PD officer Jose Santos as he was running away, posing no threat. Witnesses report Santos refused to render aid to Joshua after shooting him AND then kicked his body, already debilitated by the bullet. #JusticeForJoshuaFeast,” the lawyer shared on Friday (Dec. 11).