Unspoken Immunity and Reimagined Justice: The Potential for Implementing Restorative Justice and Community Justice Models in Police-related Shootings

Abstract

On July 6, 2016, Philando Castile was shot to death during a routine traffic stop outside of Falcon Heights, Minnesota. 1 As Officer Jeronimo Yanez approached Castile's vehicle, Castile's girlfriend began to live stream the encounter on her smart phone. 2 The graphic footage that followed demonstrates the brutal reality Castile faced as a black man approached by an armed police officer. During the 62-second traffic stop, Castile produced his insurance card and disclosed that he was lawfully carrying a firearm. 3 Yanez immediately shouted, " Don't pull it out! " 4 Castile and his girlfriend assured Yanez that he was not * J.D. Candidate, December 2017, Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University; Master of Women's History, December 2017. I would like to thank Professor Lyde Cullen Sizer for providing me with the freedom and encouragement to formulate my initial thoughts on this issue. Her guidance continually challenged me to strive for precise prose. In addition, I would like to thank Professor Michael B. Mushlin, whose incredible insights into prison reform sparked my academic and legal interest in prison abolition. To all who have remained by my side through the challenges of law and graduate school (and life), I am eternally grateful.