Kajieme Powell, 25, was shot and killed by St. Louis police officers Nicholas Shelton and Ellis Brown on August 19, 2014, after officers responded to a reported shoplifting at a convenience store. Officers found Powell pacing on the sidewalk and, according to police, holding a knife; witnesses recorded the encounter on a cell phone video. The video shows officers firing multiple shots; twelve shots were reported fired and an autopsy noted thirteen entrance wounds, one likely a re-entry wound.

Officers said they believed their lives were in jeopardy. Initial police descriptions of Powell’s distance from the officers and how he held the knife differed from what the released video appeared to show. In November 2015 the St. Louis Circuit Attorney announced no criminal charges would be filed, finding the officers acted in self-defense and that a criminal violation could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

Powell’s family, who said he suffered from mental illness, filed a wrongful death suit alleging unreasonable force.