Investigation Over, But Is Justice Served?

The report from Iowa's Attorney General exonerates the Johnson County Deputy Sheriff who used deadly force in killing John Deng on July 27th. Based on corroborated evidence from nine of "at least a dozen" witnesses on the scene, the deputy, Terry Stotler, tried to separate a knife wielding Deng and John Bohnenkamp and both men failed to heed his orders to stop.

According to the report, Stotler identified himself and drew his handgun as the two men fought on Prentiss Street. Stotler intervened between the two men and trained his gun on Deng. Stotler told Deng "Sheriff's Department. Drop the knife!" He ordered Bohnenkamp to "Run! Get out of here!" and he refused. Bohnenkamp's wife Cynthia was also screaming at him to run. Both Deng and Bohnenkamp remained in adversarial positions both refusing to heed the officer's directives after he issued them multiple times.

When it appeared to Stotler that Deng was "tensing up" within five feet of Bohnenkamp, he fired one shot that struck Deng in the left arm and entered the abdomen and Deng fell to the ground. A police officer from the Iowa City Police Department was witnessed kicking the knife away from Deng that was videotaped from a squad car.

Three witnesses who were on the scene offered contradictory statements, but because of their resistance to reporting to the police, their "unconcealed hostility toward all official personnel, and the weight of evidence that disproves their accusations," their testimony was largely discredited by the State Attorney General's report.

While the report answers many questions, facts in the report open up some new ones:

While Deng's alcohol level was tested and well above the legal limit, Bohnenkamp's was not. Why?

Why was Bohnenkamp not charged for his part of the altercation for interfering with official acts after refusing to heed Stotler's orders?

Further, the report does not address the events that led up to the two men ending up in a heated argument that turned to violence. Unless County Attorney Janet Lyness opens an inquiry that Bohnenkamp's actions are deserving of legal action, it appears that justice for all will not be served. Regardless of the actions on the evening of July 27, 2009, it must be agreed that this was a senseless tragedy.

Deng's Shooting "Justified"

Just in from the Press-Citizen:

An investigation into the shooting death of John Bior Deng has found that the Johnson County Sheriff's deputy who shot him was justified in his actions.

The investigation found that Deputy Terry Stotler, "at the moment that he discharged his handgun, reasonably believed that John Deng was within an instant of stabbing John Bohnenkamp a second time," the report reads.

"It was apparent that Deng had already stabbed Bohnenkamp once. When Deputy Stotler ordered him to drop his knice, Deng refused to do so, and made a statement indicating that he had no fear of Stotler's handgun. By one account, Deng announced his intention to kill Bohnenkamp, and by all accounts he was displaying great anger."

The report, written by Iowa Deputy Attorney General Thomas H. Miller, concludes:

"Deputy Stotler's description of events is corroborated by credible witnesses and by the available physical evidence. There exists no credible evidence to contradict any portion of his description of events. Having concluded that Deputy Stotler acted with justification, I am closing my file without further action."

Deng Death Investigation Press Conference at 1:30 p.m.

From Iowa City Police Department as of 9:01 pm Thursday 9/24:

The Iowa City Police Department will host a media conference on Friday, September 25th, regarding the John Deng death investigation.

The Iowa Department of Justice's Office of the Attorney General has completed its review of the case and has returned its final report to Janet Lyness, the County Attorney of Johnson County. Officials will comment on the investigation and review, and the Attorney General Office's report will be made available to the media and general public. The following officials will be present at the media conference:
• Thomas H. Miller - Deputy Attorney General, Office of the Iowa Attorney General;
• Janet Lyness - County Attorney, Johnson County;
• Sam Hargadine - Chief of Police, Iowa City;
• Lonny Pulkrabek - Sheriff, Johnson County.

The media conference will be held in Emma Harvat Hall (Council Chambers) in the Iowa City Civic Center, 410 E. Washington Street. The room will be open and available for set-up and seating beginning at 1:00pm on Friday, September 25th. The media conference will begin promptly at 1:30pm. Hardcopies of the Attorney General Office's report will be available during the media conference.

In Memory of John Deng

John Bior Deng, or "Deng" to his extended family and close friends, was given a very moving memorial service today at the Oak Hill Funeral Home in Coralville. Sudanese relatives a from Houston, Omaha, Michigan, as well as those from the Sudanese community in Des Moines, and Iowa City sat consoling each other. In addition, his friends, staff of the Salvation Army where he often ate, and a host of others who wanted to commemorate Deng's passing sat in witness.

His uncle Peter from Houston, Texas related to the overflowing crowd that while Deng was considered by many to be "homeless", in the Sudanese community, if you have family, you have a home. He was saddened that Deng did not let others know what his situation was. Others explained that in Sudan, many members of the family would share their plates, their huts, and so on. His cousin from Michigan described their childhood in the Sudan and how all of them had come to the United States for the freedom they could not have in their war torn country. His cousin from Nebraska encouraged anyone who may have witnessed his death to step forward and help them to understand the killing of a young man they and many others knew to be peace loving.

A cook at the Salvation Army described her conversations with Deng as uplifting and that he was very sensitive to offending her, offering "five minute apologies" if he suspected he said anything that might have made her uncomfortable. Another woman explained how he would bring her a chicken sandwich and cherry cola when he'd see her in the Ped Mall. Another told of how he helped to deliver chairs from the UI Surplus with a smile.

Many reflected that the newspaper accounts of the events leading to Deng's death made him a person they did not recognize and wanted people to know the Deng they remembered.

The burial took place at St. Joseph's cemetery in Iowa City after the visitation and memorial.

A Gentleman's Agreement?

In 1947, the landmark film "A Gentleman's Agreement" created a sensation around the issue of Antisemitism in the United States. In that film, Gregory Peck plays a magazine writer who is struggling to find an angle to write a piece about Antisemitism that hasn't been done. Though he is a Christian, he decides that he will make it known that he is Jewish and see how it plays out. A lesson he learns is that people who say they are against prejudice often stay quiet or occasionally talk about it "and think they've fought the good fight for democracy."

As Anne Dettrey, a Dorothy Parker like writer played in the movie by Celeste Holm says, people need to "take the step from talking to action. One little action on one little front.

It's got to be with action, not pamphlets...

It's got to be with people--nice people, rich people, poor people...big and little people.

And it's got to be quick."

In the case of the death of John Bior Deng, this is what seems to be happening. The local Sudanese community, University of Iowa professor Vershawn Young, and other concerned people are looking at this incident as an opportunity to pursue social justice in a center of intellectualism which largely does not act. To this end, Dr. Young and others are taking action to look into how the police and the public address persons of color in our community.

Young has taken the personal step of applying for the Police Citizens Review Board, a commission that "reviews reports prepared after investigation of complaints about alleged police misconduct. It then issues its own written reports that contain detailed findings of fact and conclusions that explain why and the extent to which complaints should be sustained or not sustained. The PCRB maintains a central registry of complaints against sworn police officers and prepares annual reports to the City Council on the disposition of these complaints."

In the case of Deng's death, the jurisdiction is with the County, but the investigation is being done by the Iowa City Police Dept., as is the protocol. Of concern is the degree of fairness that this incident will provoke, given that Deng was a transient black man. Fortunately, there were a number of witnesses to the incident and this should ensure that the investigation is thorough. What is not clear is the degree of transparency that police will provide as the investigation is on-going. To this point, police are not releasing 911 transcripts or much information about their investigation.

If you would like to take action, write to the local papers and the county board of supervisors. If you would like to support Vershawn Young's application to the PCRB, send an e-mail to council@iowa-city.org.

Community Discussion on Deng Killing Moves to City Hall

Dr. Vershawn Ashanti Young, a University of Iowa professor of African-American Studies and Rhetoric organized a forum on racial issues in Iowa City that was to be held at the Iowa City public library. According to the Iowa City Press-Citizen, Young said he is interested in discussing issues that he said are not directly tied to, but are related to, the death of 26-year-old transient John Deng. Deng was shot by a Johnson County Deputy after stabbing another man on July 26.

However, according to Donald Baxter who attended the discussion, the group, at his instigation, marched to the City Hall and had the discussion there. The Cedar Rapids Gazette reported that 30 or so people met at Iowa City's City Hall to discuss the killing of John Bior Deng, the homeless man who was shot by Johnson County deputy Terry Stotler during an altercation between Deng and Iowa City resident John Bohnenkamp outside a bar on Prentiss St. last Friday.

At the meeting, participants questioned whether race played a role in the shooting. Deng is black and Stotler is white. They also wanted to know more about the fight between Deng and Bohnenkamp and asked why Stotler didn’t try only to wound Deng. Young said “All the community is asking for is a liaison, a conversation.”

So far the investigation has been conducted with limited information being provided to the press and public. As of yesterday, County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek has not released transcripts of the 911 calls about the incident or commented on the ongoing investigation.