BALTIMORE — 27-year-old Hunter Jessup was shot and killed during an altercation with police on November 7.
They suspected Jessup of having a gun and attempted to stop him to search him; that's when Jessup took off running.
Police chased after him, with one officer nearly tackling him before falling down some stairs and injuring himself.
At one point, Jessup turned and pointed a gun at the officers, police say. A ballistics report states Jessup fired his weapon.
Multiple officers then shot Jessup, who later died.
READ MORE: Man killed, officer injured after shooting in Southwest Baltimore
“I had no idea what I was about to walk into when I got to that corner; no idea," says Free Palmese.
On Saturday, friends of Jessup gathered to mourn his loss.
Jelevon Nolley says he was with Jessup when police first approached them. He wants the body cam footage released to the public.
“Justice for Hunter. That's all I want; justice for Hunter. I just want the officers held accountable. Enough is enough; too many innocent black young men lost their lives to the police. It's too many; enough is enough," said Nolley.
Others who knew Jessup say although he had a weapon, he wasn’t the type to cause harm.
“Just your average, okay, all-around good guy, like not out to cause any trouble, you know it doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t even make sense that they are harassed the way they are," said Palmese.
On Tuesday, Baltimore Police Commissioner Richard Worley said police were doing their job, ensuring the safety of the neighborhood, when they first approached Jessup.
“We’ve had several shootings in this area, and they were doing proactive patrol, which our members are out doing every single day," said Worley.
Mayor Scott said the incident stems from a larger issue in Baltimore.
“We know that this again points to a bigger and broader issue about the flow of guns into our city, and we cannot have individuals just walking around with these weapons that can lead to incidents like today that are very unfortunate," he said.
The Attorney General’s Office continues to investigate the circumstances of the fatal shooting.
They will release the body cam footage to the public, but have not said when that will happen.
