Body camera footage released on social media Monday shows a near encounter between former Columbus police officer Canyon Boykin and Columbus resident Ricky Ball nearly two months before Boykin shot and killed Ball during a traffic stop in October 2015.
The recording, released by the organization “Justice for Ricky Ball” on its Facebook page Monday morning, documents an Aug. 27, 2015, incident during which Boykin and his then-partner Johnny Max Branch, both white, chased Ball, black, and a white female passenger in their squad car.
During the chase shown in the video, Boykin suggests he is related to the woman passenger and refers to Ball using profane language. He also indicates he previously encountered Ball and appears to make a personal call during the chase to someone he calls “Nana,” with whom he discusses the ongoing pursuit.
After he shot and killed Ball following a separate traffic stop on Northside almost two months later, Boykin was fired from Columbus Police Department for several policy violations, including not activating his body camera during the incident. In 2016, he was indicted for manslaughter, though Boykin claimed he shot Ball in self-defense.
The case remained pending in the state Attorney General’s Office until last month, when newly-elected AG Lynn Fitch announced she would drop charges against Boykin.
District Attorney Scott Colom, who in 2016 asked then-AG Jim Hood to head the investigation, confirmed to The Dispatch Monday the footage released on Facebook was part of the evidence presented to the AG’s Office. Fitch’s office turned over the case file to Colom’s office Saturday after local leaders pressed for an explanation of the dismissal.
Colom said he plans to release as much of the evidence as he legally can on his website next week.
Video of the August pursuit
In the video — a recording from Branch’s body camera — Branch drives the car with Boykin in the passenger seat. They spot a black male driver and a white female passenger in a blue Hyundai.
Boykin says the woman, whom he calls “Laura Lee,” is “related to me.”
“I’ve been trying to tell her f—— parents, I’ve been telling them, man, I’ve been telling them that she’s f—– up,” he says.
During the chase, Boykin tells someone he refers to as “Nana” on the phone he spotted the woman in the car and Ball drove away from him.
“She passed right by in front of me, I seen her, I said, ‘Branch, stop that car,'” he says. “That m—–f—– took out on me, Nana.”
Boykin also curses several times at the Hyundai’s driver.
“He’s going to jail, he did the right thing to run,” he says. “Please still be in the f—— car, m—-f—–, if I get my f—— hands on him, f—— (garbled) him, m—–f—–.”
Once the vehicle stops, the driver is no longer in the car. Branch searches through the woman’s phone without a warrant or asking for her consent, the video shows. When Boykin asks the woman for the driver’s name, she says “Rick.”
The black male was later identified as Ball, according to Branch’s deposition Colom provided to The Dispatch Monday afternoon upon request. Ball drove the car and ran from the police during a traffic stop, which prompted the chase, Branch said in his deposition, and the car was later speeding at “75 (miles per hour) in a residential area.”
In an investigative report on the August incident, which Colom provided to The Dispatch upon request, Branch said Ball’s car failed to stop at a stop sign, hit a parked vehicle and almost hit a police car during the chase. Ball’s woman passenger, identified as Laura Lee Hines, told Branch at the scene Ball didn’t stop because he had “narcotics in the vehicle.”
In a post on its Facebook page, “Justice for Ricky Ball” said the stop was “unlawful” because Boykin only stopped Ball’s car after seeing his relative — with no other probable cause. The group also condemned Fitch’s dismissal of the case after reviewing the video, which the group said suggests Boykin had previously encountered Ball before killing him.
“AG Fitch also has sworn eyewitness testimony stating that Boykin began shooting at Ricky Ball with no interaction between the two of them,” the post read. “The only evidence that AG Fitch can present is evidence of a cover-up.”
Ricky Ball’s relative, Ernesto Ball, is listed as the contact for the Facebook page. The Dispatch could not reach him for comment by press time.
‘That’s just a portion’
Columbus Mayor Robert Smith said the language Boykin used in the video was inappropriate.
“He used some profane language that was unbecoming of a police officer on duty,” he said. “He was irate. He just wanted to get his hands on him. Just from him talking on the video, he knew who Ricky Ball was.”
However, he said, he hopes citizens do not rush to judgment until examining all the evidence.
“That’s just a portion,” he said. “I’m quite sure by the time Scott (Colom) releases what he has, (people) will come to a conclusion about how they feel about the case.”
Colom said the release of the video online — ahead of his schedule to publish all evidence – was likely an expression of anger and frustration by Ball’s family. Although he understands the pain, he said, the video alone does not offer a comprehensive context.
“The behavior was uncalled for,” Colom said. “I do not condone the language use. (But) you need more context because that is not the day the shooting occurred.”
Jim Waide of Tupelo, a lawyer who represents Boykin, said there was no indication Boykin knew who Ball was in the video from August, and it does not counter Boykin’s claim he shot Ball in October in self-defense.
Trying the case in court, Waide said, would have been “a total embarrassment” for the prosecutors due to a lack of evidence.
“The only ethical thing to do when they don’t have a case is to dismiss the case,” he said. “They had no evidence they could introduce.”
Plan to release the evidence
Colom told The Dispatch Monday his office needs time to review the case file before releasing it to the public sometime next week.
The office will trim down duplicative information included in the file and redact personal information, such as dates of birth and Social Security numbers, he said.
“There are privacy laws we must follow and we have to be mindful about the family of Ricky Ball,” Colom said in a Monday Facebook post. “I won’t be publicizing autopsy photos or other photos or videos that aren’t relevant to the evidence but could be hurtful to the Ball family.”
Although Boykin did not turn on his body camera during the shooting, Colom said other video clips, including footage from other officers’ body cameras when they arrived at the scene after the shooting, could also be reviewed and edited.
“I appreciate the AG office’s quick response and prompt action in getting this information to us. In this moment, transparency and truth are more important than ever,” Colom said in his post. “Hopefully we can start the healing process and the work to make sure everyone can trust our police department and our criminal justice system.”
Rep. Kabir Karriem (D-Columbus), who was a city councilman when the shooting happened, said he looks forward to examining the evidence.
“I’m eager to find out what’s all in the case file,” he said. “There were questions about the night of the shooting.”
However, he remained critical of the decision to dismiss the case without putting Boykin through a trial. Ball’s family, he said, deserved to hear the case in court.
“I’m upset just being a citizen,” Karriem said. “I’m fearful this (decision) establishes a precedent that gives our community the perception that law enforcement can kill without impunity.”
Moving forward, Karriem said he hopes the Ball case would start a public conversation on the relationship between law enforcement and the community as well as on Fitch’s method for dealing with future cases like it.
“I believe and hope that this is a teachable moment where a conversation can be had with the AG’s office throughout the state,” he said. “And talk to people of colors, black, brown, whatever, to let (people) know the policies and procedures on how she will handle cases … of this magnitude.”
Fitch’s office could not be reached for comment by press time.
Columbus Police Chief Fred Shelton could not be reached for comment.
Yue Stella Yu was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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