BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — A six-year-old boy was caught in the middle of the deadly encounter between Buffalo police and a driver early Wednesday on Kensington Avenue, all captured on police body camera video.
The boy was in the front passenger seat of the vehicle 25-year-old Dae'von Roberts was driving. He is Roberts' cousin's son.
Roberts was pulled over by Buffalo police for an apparent speeding violation and tinted windows. That is when they noticed the little boy in the front seat with no seatbelt on.
The traffic stop started calmly and then one of the officers asked Roberts to get out of the car after he could not find a valid driver's license for him in the system.
According to Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia, the officer reached into the car to open the door and was standing in the space between the door and the driver's seat when Roberts attempted to flee.
"The officer said 'You're going to kill me, you're going to kill me,' He was pleading with him to stop," Gramaglia said.
Seconds later, the officer fired his gun five times. Gramaglia says the officer and Roberts tumbled out of the vehicle as it kept going with the little boy still inside. He was not hurt and the officer ran and rescued him.
Police released body camera video of the incident on Thursday.
The video contains strong language and graphic images. It may be disturbing to watch for some.
Thousands of people have seen the video and the trauma that the child endured.
"When the police are gone, the ambulance is gone, the fire trucks are gone. Who's talking to that six-year-old baby about what he just witnessed?" asked Zeneta Everhart, who represents the Masten District on the Buffalo Common Council. She's the mother of Zaire Goodman, a Tops supermarket worker who survived being shot in the May 14, 2022, racist attack at the Jefferson Avenue grocery store.
She's advocating for the city to form an Office of Gun Violence Prevention and said providing counseling to children who witness trauma would be part of that.
Everhart and many others, including the chairman of Stop The Violence, Murray Holman believe an Office of Gun Violence Prevention could make a difference.
"These are human beings. We have to deal with the human aspect of it too. These are babies who are going to grow up in our community. We have to make sure that they are OK," Everhart told 7 News Senior Reporter Maki Becker.
Kareema Morris, executive director of Bury the Violence, tells 7 News children in the city experience all kinds of traumas and need help, especially this little boy.
"We need to hear his perspective. Meet him where he's at and, and serve him with resources and counseling and things like that because we can't change what he's seen," said Morris.
She said there are organizations that provide help such as Back to Basics Ministries and the Buffalo Urban League but it's hard to find counseling services for children. She says there are long waiting lists. She hopes there will be more.
