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Lydia McLaughlin and her household, together with dad Scott and brother Jesse, are reacting to the discharge of physique cam footage of her different brother, Geoffrey Stirling, being fatally shot by police.

After the Newport Seaside Police Division shared the video on Wednesday, revealing particulars concerning the April 17 capturing, the 44-year-old Actual Housewives of Orange County alum confirmed plans to file a lawsuit towards the group, whom she has accused of “unjustified use of deadly drive.”

Within the video, Geoff tells the cop when he’s approached in his bike, “I haven’t been ingesting, officer. I’m totally sober, I’m simply attempting to keep secure. Folks have virtually been hitting me all day.”

After the officer asks him to sit down, he responded “I don’t care what you’re telling me to do.”

Geoff then tried reaching for his ID, whereas additionally asking the officer not to shoot him. “Don’t shoot me,” he mentioned.   

“I’m not going to shoot you,” the officer replied. “Don’t attain for f***ing s***, how about that?”

The 2 continued to argue for shut to 30 seconds when Geoff appeared to take some steps towards the officer. That led to a bodily altercation throughout which Geoff allegedly reached for the officer’s taser and tried to level it on the officer’s head. The officer then retaliated by capturing Geoff six occasions.

You video is posted on YouTube.  

“The movies have raised severe considerations and many questions on the actions of that police officer,” the Stirling household advised Us Weekly on Could 8, by way of their attorneys. “Of grave and particular concern is that the movies seem to present Geoff transferring away from the officer on the time he was shot six occasions. The household by means of their Attorneys plan to file a lawsuit in Federal Courtroom to get hold of full solutions and search accountability.”

The household’s assertion got here in response to a briefing video from the police division, which was shared on Fb.

“The Newport Seaside Police Division stays dedicated to transparency and accountability in all of its operations,” the division mentioned. “The discharge of this video is an element of our ongoing efforts to maintain the group knowledgeable and engaged.”

Within the video, Sergeant Steve Oberon claimed the capturing occurred after “Mr. Stirling struck the officer a number of occasions within the head after which eliminated the officer’s taser from his obligation belt.”

Nevertheless, Geoffrey’s household believes the physique cam footage proves in any other case.

“Geoff was experiencing a psychological well being disaster when he was stopped for a visitors infraction. Geoff was unarmed and posed no lethal risk to the officer,” the household insisted in a press release. “The Stirling household expects that every one video and audio footage together with each report and shred of proof associated to this deeply disturbing capturing be preserved for presentation sooner or later as half of the lawsuit the household might be pursuing. The trigger of dying was blood loss.”

Whereas the household alleged that “no help was initially supplied” to Geoffrey, Sergeant Oberon mentioned officers “formulated a plan to take Mr. Stirling into custody and start administering medical help. A couple of minutes after the capturing, the Newport Seaside Hearth Division arrived on scene and took over medical therapy.”

Moreover, Police Chief Dave Miner mentioned that “an unbiased company [would] conduct their very own unbiased investigation.”

On Could 5, Lydia, who misplaced her mother, Judy Stirling, to most cancers on the finish of final yr, confirmed Geoffrey, who was 45 on the time of the capturing, had been laid to relaxation in an Instagram put up.

“Yesterday, we laid my brother to relaxation. Simply six months in the past, we stood on this identical place, grieving the loss of my mother. My coronary heart is damaged, and the shock nonetheless hasn’t settled. However even within the sorrow, I cling to what I do know is true: God is sweet,” she declared. “He is in management. I’m not. My brother is now with my mother, and I maintain onto the promise that sooner or later, we’ll all be reunited. Till then, I’ll miss them each single day.”

The household went on to state that they’re “heartbroken and devastated” that Geoffrey “was taken from them in what seems to be an unjustified use of deadly drive.”

“Equally tragic is that there could have been different choices and ways out there to the officer that he failed to make the most of primarily based on his coaching,” the assertion concluded.