NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana State Police troopers involved in the violent arrest of a Black motorist who died in police custody in 2019 should be immediately fired and charged with crimes, leaders of the National Urban League and other civil rights groups said Thursday.
Marc Morial, the national president of the Urban League and a former mayor of New Orleans, was joined by other state and local civil rights groups in calling for action during an online news conference. Their remarks came just a week after The Associated Press obtained and published body camera video that appears to contradict at least one trooper’s statement that Ronald Greene continued to be a threat even after he was restrained, which justified the troopers’ use of force.
“Mr. Greene was killed by these state troopers,” Morial said after playing an Associated Press video report that included an interview with an expert on police use of force. “After seeing that video, no reasonable person could come to any other conclusion other than a crime has been committed by Louisiana state troopers.”
Civil rights attorney Ron Haley added, “Make no mistake: Ron Greene was murdered at the hands of Louisiana State Police.”
Greene’s mother, Mona Hardin, appeared at the news conference with family attorney Lee Merritt, who said they had met with a state legislator as well as previously appealed to the governor’s office and district attorney to ask a judge to issue an arrest warrant for the troopers….
