Woman follows elected leader’s advice to resolve disputes without NYPD, gets shot and killed

Shatavia Walls, 33, was reportedly following the advice of Eric Adams, the Brooklyn Borough President, in attempting to use "community policing" when she confronted a group of people who were setting off an illegal fireworks display. She asked them to relocate to a different area as there were children playing close by.

When the confrontation became unfriendly, Walls was shot at and chased into an apartment building. Walls was not hit during this incident. She collected the shell casing as well as the shooter's license, which he had dropped.

Walls' mother, Helen Testagros, said that her daughter reported the incident to police but nothing was done.

"She watched the news. Yes, she heard it," Walls’ mother said, in reference to Adams’ advice. "It was probably in the back of her mind."

"Stopping fireworks cannot turn into fireworks between the police and the community," said Adams on June 21. "We want a good community response to dealing with a nuisance… This is a nonviolent act. So those three numbers that we all dial, 911, get over that."

"We have left the place of 911 being the response for everything in our city. Now we have to stop talking the talk, and walk the walk," Adams added. "What does community policing look like? It’s the extension of everyday residents engaging with people when there are nonviolent acts taking place in the city."

"It’s not a good idea. You don’t know who you are approaching," Testagros added. "These kids are not respectful anymore… They’re more ruthless."

On July 7, Walls encountered a group of illegal fireworks igniters again, which included the suspect from the first shooting. She again asked for the display to be relocated. Walls was shot multiple times. She died shortly after the incident in a nearby hospital.

The NYPD claims that they were not notified about the incident until July 7—the day that Walls was killed.

Adam’s stuck by his advice in a statement about Walls’ death.

"My heart goes out to the family of Shatavia Walls on this horrific incident," Adams said. "Gun violence has hurt too many innocent people in our city, from 1-year-old Davell Gardner to this dynamic young lady. Dangerous people are shooting innocent people for senseless reasons. I renew my call for cracking down on the scourge of illegal guns."

"Our call is to continue building an ecosystem of public safety that includes community response and police. Whenever someone exhibits violence we should call the police, but whenever we can communicate peacefully with our neighbours, we should do so."

Fireworks have been a pervasive complaint by New Yorkers. Fireworks are illegal in the state, yet there have been multiple accounts of fireworks being set off all through the night in neighbourhoods across the five boroughs.

Yesterday, the New York Sheriff's office arrested 127 people and confiscated two shipping containers' worth of illegal fireworks.