Americas

Americas

Police chief in U.S. town temporarily steps down in death of black teen

22 March 2012 22:26 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Police chief Bill Lee of Florida town of Sanford on Thursday temporarily stepped aside from his duties, having been accused of mishandling the situation surrounding the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

In a nationally televised press conference from Sanford, Lee made a short statement, saying he is temporarily removing himself from the position of police chief.

"My role as the leader of this agency has become a distraction from the investigation," Lee said. "It is apparent that my involvement in this matter is overshadowing the process."

Sanford City Manager Norton Bonaparte said the city was taking proper steps to ensure the investigation is sound, and the judicial process can run its course.

"What the city wants most for the family of Trayvon Martin is justice," he said.

Lee has been the target of criticism since the death of Martin, a 17-year-old high school student on Feb. 26. He was fatally shot while walking to the house of his father’s fiancee in a gated community in Sanford.

George Zimmerman, 28, a neighborhood watch volunteer, said he shot the teen in self-defense, and has not been arrested, but the incident gained national attention and many, including the Martin family, believe that race was a factor. Zimmerman was described by police reports as a white male, but his family say he’s Hispanic, according to local press reports.

As press coverage around the case intensifies, protests broke out across the country on the shooting, and thousands took to the streets across the country.

Lee, who would not arrest Zimmerman, has insisted his agency did a fair and thorough investigation, but black leaders, those in Sanford as well as National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) President Benjamin Todd Jealous, said he had to go. The city commissioners also handed down a 3-2 no confidence censure to Lee Wednesday night.

Last week, police officially handed over the case to the State Attorney’s Office, leaving it to prosecutors to decide whether to charge Zimmerman with manslaughter or some other crime. A grand jury is scheduled to review case evidence on April 10.