Transparency Matters To Us
After learning of an incident at the Walmart in Lockport that involved a police response, the I-Team obtained body-worn camera video from an attorney representing the plaintiff.
LOCKPORT, N.Y. (WKBW) — As Joseph Harper sat in his vehicle, waiting for his wife and kids to finish shopping at the Walmart on Transit Road in Lockport, he became surrounded and was held at gunpoint by law enforcement.
"Face away from me," yelled a Niagara County Sheriff's Office deputy to Harper. "Keep your hands up. Keep your hands up. All the way up. Listen to what I'm saying."
The incident occurred in July 2022, the 59-year-old was placed in handcuffs and escorted into a patrol car while deputies began an investigation.
Inside the Walmart, deputies met with an employee named Eric Tompkins, who summoned law enforcement to the store. Tompkins claimed that while he was walking through the parking lot, Harper brandished a gun.
"I was just walking by and he was like, 'hey white boy, what set you repping?' And then he held up like a huge gun," Tompkins told deputies.
Captured on body-worn cameras, Harper's attorney shared the video with 7 News that he obtained through a Freedom of Information Law request.
"I am cooperating," Harper told deputies. "I did nothing wrong."
Deputies asked Tompkins to confirm that Harper was the man he identified as the person who he accused of flashing a gun.
Deputy: "So can you see him right now?"
Tompkins: "Yeah, that’s him."
Deputy: "Alright, wait right here."
Outside, deputies searched through the car and parking lot for the gun. No firearm was found, according to the Niagara County Sheriff's Office.
Legitimacy of allegations questioned
Adamant that he saw a gun, deputies pulled Walmart surveillance footage of the alleged encounter and reviewed it with Tompkins.
Deputy: "So wait, that’s him? Is that him right there?"
Tompkins: "Yeah, that’s him right there."
Deputy: "I didn’t even see anything."
Harper sat down with the I-Team exclusively to share his story.
"Going through my mind, I was thinking about guys [...] you know (George) Floyd and all of that stuff," said Harper. "What’s happening with Black guys, you know? I thought I was going to die that day."
Harper was released from police custody and officers shared their frustrations.
"I’m just as pissed off about the fact that this ended up being nothing, because somebody could have gotten hurt tonight," said one deputy. "And I wouldn’t want that to happen."
No charges were filed against Harper or Tompkins.
Niagara County Sheriff Michael J. Filicetti told 7 News it would be difficult to charge Tompkins for making a false call.
"If it was truly just a false allegation where this guy (Tompkins) ultimately says to us, 'I just made it up, I don’t think I really saw a gun,' we could certainly charge him with falsely reporting an incident," said Filicetti. "We have to prove that in court, that he knew that there was no gun. That he basically called a false incident to get us to respond, and now we can charge him with falsely reporting an incident."
Harper files suit against Walmart, Tompkins
While Tompkins is not facing criminal charges, he is facing action in civil court. Harper filed a lawsuit against both Walmart and Tompkins.
Attorney David J. Wolff is representing Harper, who is demanding a monetary judgment.
"He was laughing at how Mr. Harper had a gun drawn on him," said Wolff. "I mean it’s a very, very concerning thing that not only this individual should be taking seriously, but that Walmart should be taking seriously."
A spokesperson for Walmart provided the I-Team with a statement saying, "We take the safety and security of our customers seriously. We have processes in place to assess our security measures. We will respond in court as appropriate.”
But in court, Walmart filed an answer to Harper's complaint, denying that Eric Tompkins was ever a Walmart employee, and adding that anything that happened to Harper while on their property was the result of his own conduct or negligence.
An attorney representing Walmart declined to comment.
Tompkins responded to the suit, writing, "I in no way intentionally made a false statement." "I may have been mistaken about what I saw," he added, while also requesting the case be dismissed. Tompkins did not respond to the I-Team's request for comment.
"Still having problems right now sleeping," Harper said. "I dream about it. It traumatized me. It really traumatized me. That’s all I can say."
"I just think I was a Black guy sitting there in the car," said Harper.