The Virginia Beach Commonwealth’s Attorney declined to charge four police officers with any wrongdoing in the shooting death of India Kager. At a press conference on Wednesday in Virginia Beach, Colin Stolle said, “I’ve come to the conclusion that the four Virginia Police Officers involved did not violate the law and will not be prosecuted.”
Attorney Stolle released the results of a six-month investigation during the press conference, along with a one-minute video sequence of the incident which he claims exonerates the four police officers involved in the September 5th shooting. The video was obtained from an out of focus surveillance camera mounted outside a 7-11 convenience store.
The grainy video, which was enhanced in a lab, shows two unmarked police vehicles follow a Cadillac into the parking lot of the 7-11 convenience store at Lynnhaven Parkway and Salem Road.
As the Cadillac, driven by India Kager, comes to a stop in the parking lot, one police SWAT vehicle bumps it from behind while a second vehicle pulls up next to the first vehicle. Police SWAT simultaneously fire flash-bang grenades at the sides of the Cadillac. Police immediately jump out of both vans with weapons drawn and within seconds begin firing into the Cadillac, killing both India Kager and Angelo Perry. Their four-month-old child, who was in his car seat behind Kager and Perry, was not hit. Less than 15 seconds elapse in the sequence from the moment the police van bumps the Cadillac to the end of police gunfire. Police fired 30 times. There is no sound in the video.
It is not possible to tell from the video if Angelo Perry returns fire as Attorney Stolle claimed he did. There is no indication of gunfire muzzle flash from Angelo Perry’s passenger side of the Cadillac, nor is any discernible in the video. However, flashes are visible from the SWAT police weapons, which also have flashlights mounted on their weapons. At least four officers are seen firing their weapons based on the flashes from them but eight SWAT police are seen in the video exiting the two police vans.
Attorney Stolle stated India Kager was struck by police fire 7-10 times, while Angelo Perry was struck 15 times. “None of the officers targeted Ms. Kager,” he said.
In a statement to Revolution News, Gina Best, mother of India Kager, slammed the Virginia Beach police action calling it an “execution of an innocent woman” and an “illegal due process” in which she was “denied her human and constitutional rights”.
“You can see from the video that these officers did not have the intent to protect her,” said Best. She pointed out a time sequence discrepancy between previous police statements and the video they released today. “They were stating to press that this was 15 seconds-it was less than five seconds that they were dead,” she said.
Best further criticized Virginia Beach police for not giving Kager or Perry a compliance order or enough time to comply if one was even given. “Each of them had rifles with lights on them-they jumped out with the rifles already drawn,” she said.
Further, Best said it was not possible for Perry to have time to fire at police. “One of the officers goes up to the window and immediately fired at Angelo Perry,” she said. “This was after they already fired flash-bang grenades,” she said.
Carla Martine, a member of truth Seekers for India Kager, who was previously a parole officer, said that the flash-bang grenades would have incapacitated both Kager and Perry. “In 15 seconds they would not have had time to regain vision or balance.” As a parole officer, Martine previously trained with flash-bang grenades and said she understood how they affect coordination.
India Kager was a postal carrier and a Navy Veteran, who was Honorably discharged after serving four years in 2013. She had earned a good conduct medal and several other decorations.
Both Kager’s father and grandfather are retired Washington, DC police officers. She had never been in trouble with the police or even received a traffic infraction, according to Best. She left two children behind, one of which was in the car with her when she died.
Best says the video shows her daughter trying to protect her child in her last moments. “They had plenty of opportunities to apprehend Mr. Perry if that’s what they wanted to do,” said Best. “They could have called it off,” said Best.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Colin Stolle is the brother of Virginia Beach Sheriff Ken Stolle.
