When Pittsburgh native Mileek Grissom, 23, was shot and rushed to UPMC Mercy hospital two years ago, his stepfather, the Rev. Earl Baldwin Jr., rushed to his side.
Although there had been no official declaration from doctors, Baldwin says he knew Grissom was already dead. So he put his head next to his stepson’s and cried; wanting to pray over him and let the young man know that he was going to take care of his family.
But then, according to Baldwin, who had spoken out publicly about the need to end gun violence in Pittsburgh even before the shooting, he never got the chance because police pulled him off Grissom and then used a Taser on him.
The family is now suing the Pittsburgh police regarding the alleged incident, which was captured on a video that has just been released.
“I needed to tell him his family was going to be OK. I was going to do everything I could to make sure they were OK,” Baldwin told WPXI.
Police have another story.
They claim their actions were based on Baldwin was getting in the way of doctors working to revive his stepson. But the video captures images that show police pushing the medical bed that holds an injured Grissom away; while they continue to deal with subduing the reverend. The video doesn’t appear to show any doctors or nurses caring for Grissom.
“Watch the video,” the Baldwins’ family attorney, Joel Sansone, told the news station. “Not only was the child not being treated. The child was dead.”
According to Sansone, police also stopped Grissom’s mother, Tori Baldwin, at the entrance of the hospital and refused to let her see her son, WPXI reports.
“I wanted to rub his head. I wanted to kiss him. I know he was calling for his mom,” Tori Baldwin told the news station.
According to the news station, Pittsburgh police didn’t respond to requests for comments, but the hospital issued a statement, saying in part, “This was a stressful situation and a tragic loss for this family. However, the allegations about the circumstances are inaccurate.”
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(Photo/Video Source: YouTube)
