Attorney: Video of Miami Gardens police shooting does not corroborate officer's story

Video of Lavall Hall shooting to be made public

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – An attorney for the family of a mentally ill man who was fatally shot by police in Miami Gardens says video of the shooting conflicts with the officer's account.

Family members of Lavall Hall want that video shown because they said the officer did not have to shoot and kill him.

Late Tuesday afternoon, Miami-Dade County's state attorney said she couldn't prevent lawyers from releasing the video, but Katherine Fernandez Rundle warned that "this potential contamination may compromise our common goal to seek truth and ultimately undermine the integrity of the investigation."

The public will soon see what happened the night Hall was shot in his Miami Gardens neighborhood in video recorded by a Miami Gardens police dashboard camera.

"All I can tell you is I've seen it," attorney Glen Goldberg said. "It's very disturbing."

In February, the mentally ill man was having a violent episode when his mother called 911, hoping police would place him under the care of a mental facility per the Baker Act.

Police said when officers arrived of the scene, Hall was carrying a broomstick and attacked Officer Eddy Trimino, who eventually shot Hall. 

The incident has enraged the community, causing a massive outcry about the Miami Gardens Police Department.

Hall's mother and family are now suing the department.

"This is a situation where the police must be held accountable for this," Goldberg said. "And the video will demonstrate exactly what happened that day."

The video is 19 minutes long. Those who have seen it said the quality is good and the audio is clear, making it a fair representation of the confrontation between Hall and the officer.

In a statement Tuesday, the Miami Gardens Police Department said it released the video in question to Hall's mother.

"Pursuant to the statute on Thursday, March 2, 2015, the city of Miami Gardens released video from the dashboard camera of a city vehicle, as well as the video from the rear camera of a city of Miami Gardens vehicle," the statement said.

Police declined to comment on the open investigation.

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