By Dana Rieck
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — The video shows Darius Kennedy leaning against the entrance to the bathroom in Terminal 1 at Lambert International Airport. Several officers are closing in on him.
The 31-year-old slides a kitchen knife from his sleeve.
“I’m not leaving,” Kennedy says.
Then he runs toward the officers.
On Friday, about a month-and-a-half later, St. Louis County police released about three minutes of surveillance and police body-camera footage showing, for the first time, how Kennedy was shot and killed by an officer on Nov. 21. It shows Kennedy pulling out a knife and running at officers, one officer firing, another tasing Kennedy — then officers pistol-whip him, tase him and cuff him as he continues to struggle.
The entire interaction takes less than 90 seconds.
Airport police asked St. Louis County detectives to investigate.
The investigation has not concluded, but it’s department policy to release relevant footage within 45 days to help the public better understand officer-involved incidents.
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Police said Kennedy was homeless, and apparently entered the terminal near the MetroLink platform to use a restroom on the upper level, authorities said. TSA security checkpoints are on the lower level.
The footage starts at about 12:40 a.m.
Kennedy, in a black jacket, jeans and white sneakers, is leaning against the bathroom’s entrance when at least four officers approach him, it shows.
The officer there first says, “Let’s go, bud.”
Kennedy says he can’t leave. After a small back and forth, the cops ask what Kennedy means.
“If I leave, they’re going to kill me,” Kennedy says as the police continue to get closer.
One of the officers asks Kennedy to repeat himself.
“If I leave, I’m gonna get killed,” Kennedy says, then slides a Farberware kitchen knife from his sleeve.
The officers continue to close in on Kennedy.
“You’re gonna get killed?” one asks.
“I can’t leave,” Kennedy says.
“Hey, bruh,” an officer says, drawing his gun.
“I’m not leaving,” Kennedy says, turning his back to the officers and raising his hands — with the knife in one of them.
Then several officers yell, “Drop the knife!”
Kennedy lowers his arms, turns toward the officers, and begins to run.
At first, it appears he’s trying to run away.
But then several things happen at once:
One officer tases Kennedy. Another shows up in the empty hallway in front of Kennedy. Kennedy turns, running toward a different officer. Then that officer fires his gun four times.
“Mother ... son of a,” says the cop who shot him.
The officer who tased Kennedy drops the taser and pulls his gun out as he walks to Kennedy. He pushes the barrel of the gun to Kennedy’s head.
“Put your hands up now,” he says. “I’ll blow your (expletive) head off.”
Kennedy tries to pull himself into a sitting position, and the cop with the gun to Kennedy’s head pistol whips him.
The officer who fired the shots radios for EMS. Then he calls to his fellow officers, who are dragging Kennedy on the ground by his arm, trying to cuff him. Kennedy is conscious and moving.
“Hey, hey, hey,” the officer who fired the shots says to his colleagues.
“Put your hands behind your back,” an officer in the struggle says.
“Do it,” Kennedy replies.
The officer repeats his command.
“Kill me,” Kennedy says.
The officer then picks up his taser and tases Kennedy for several seconds until he lies motionless face down. The officers finish cuffing him.
Kennedy was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police also released a photo of what they said was Kennedy’s knife. Most of the blade had been broken off.
No officers were injured.
The officer who shot Kennedy is 43 with two years of experience, police said. The officer who used his taser is 39 with 12 years of experience in law enforcement.
Police said they will forward their final reports to the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for review.
