SALT LAKE CITY -- Salt Lake City Police released the body camera footage of the fatal shooting of 22-year-old Bernardo Palacios Friday afternoon.
Later that evening, about a dozen people gathered near 900 South and 300 West in Salt Lake City in honor of Palacios, who was shot and killed by SLCPD officers last month. People held signs and chanted "I don’t want to die" and "Justice for Bernardo."
“We want justice for Bernado because he didn’t have the chance to defend himself,” said Lorena Burciaga, a family friend. “And when he fell to the ground, his last words to the police were ‘I don’t want to die’ and the police shot him again."
Palacios loved to draw and was loved by his family and friends, Burciaga said. She said he was like a son to her and she wants justice to be served, including having all officers investigated that were there that night. She also wants to see the body camera footage starting from when police encountered Bernardo.
“We want justice and we demand that the police open an investigation,” she said.
SLC Police Chief Mike Brown and Mayor Erin Mendenhall spoke Friday, shortly after the body-cam footage was released. There is an investigation ongoing, led by Unified Police, as well as several independent review boards.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to raise funds for Palacios' funeral and burial expenses.
