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[CAR DOOR OPENS]
[RADIO CHATTERING INDISTINCTLY]
[CAR DOOR SLAMS]
[KEYS JINGLE]
-OFFICER: How you doing tonight? -Doing well, Officer.
Can I see your driver's license,
registration and insurance, please?
Of course. My license is right here in my wallet.
I need to reach past my 14 year-old son
to get my registration insurance from the glove box.
-Is that all right? -OFFICER: Sure.
Okay.
LINC: One second, my son.
You live in the area?
LINC: No, sir.
OFFICER: Where you coming from?
LINC: Picking up my son from a friend's house.
[GLOVE BOX CLICKS]
Here you go.
OFFICER: You're on parole or have any warrants
-I should know about? -No, sir.
Are you aware your insurance has expired?
Uh, it must be an old copy...
The car definitely has insurance.
Uh, I might have a new copy...
Hey, keep your hands where I can see them, sir.
Relax. Right here, sir. Right here.
It's okay. It's all right. It's all right.
Oh, thank you.
Can I have you step out of the vehicle?
Uh, sure. Undo my seatbelt.
[SEATBELT CLICKS]
It's okay. It's all right.
-[DOOR CLICKS] -It's all right, Son.
-OFFICER 2: Hands up. -LINC: Hey, hey, hey, hey.
Wait, wait, wait.
-Sir, sir, sir he's a kid. -Put your hands on the dashboard
right now. Drop the whatever you have in your hand.
-Put the phone down. -KJ: It's my phone.
-It's my phone. -Sir, it's a phone.
It's a cell phone, it's just a cell phone.
-[THUMPING] -Put the phone down.
Exit the car and put your hands in the air.
LINC: Officer, please. He's just a kid.
-I can talk to him. -LINC: Please, he's just a kid.
Exit the car with your hands in the air.
LINC: He's gonna get out. Okay, get out of the car son.
Easy, easy.
-KJ: It's just a phone. -I need you to put the phone away.
Put the phone away and sit on the curb.
He's unarmed, okay. He's just...
-Sir, just let us do our job. -OFFICER 2: Put the phone away and sit on the curb.
-Put the fucking phone away. -Put it down!
Put the fucking phone away!
[CLEARS THROAT]
May I help you?
Linc, I'm Jordin King.
We talked a few times on the phone.
The student filmmaker.
We spoke about me possibly doing some interviews with you
around what happened to your son.
Come on in.
Come on.
A mark.
B mark.
[LINC SIGHS]
NADIR: Just put the belt pack on.
Who will all this be seen by?
My class mostly.
Professors, staff.
If people respond to it,
we'll try and get it into some festivals.
Festivals?
A festival is like a group of public screenings.
Only, it's curated.
People get dressed up, they go see it,
and when it's over,
everyone looks around for reactions.
If the right people hate it, it dies,
and if the right people love it,
we get a chance to bring it to the world.
So this could be seen by people over the world.
It's possible.
What's that?
JORDIN: That's B cam.
Just another angle, something behind the scenes.
So I've got some questions,
kind of all over the place.
Some easy stuff, some hard.
Anything you don't feel like answering,
you don't have to.
Can you say your name into the camera?
Um, Lincoln Jefferson.
I go by Linc.
By now, a lot of people know about KJ
and what happened to him.
But few people know who KJ was
or what he was like. In one word or a sentence even,
how would you describe him?
[SIGHS]
You know, um, I can show you
better than I can tell you.
What happens when old people act like they're young people?
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
Is that you?
KJ: Kind of.
WOMAN: I'm not trying to spend Christmas in an emergency room.
LINC: Okay, y'all know me and how much I can do.
Oh![LAUGHS]
[ALL LAUGHING]
It was all the time, every day he was um...
He was just funny.
Um, smart,
uh, just an all around good kid, you know?
-JORDIN: Mm-hmm. -Yeah.
[CLEARS THROAT]
Can you tell me what happened on July 3rd of last year?
-OFFICER 1: Put it away! -LINC: Please, listen...
-BERNICE: All right. -JORDIN: Thank you so much.
WOMAN: You're welcome.
NADIR: Oh, no, I'm good. Thank you.
MAN: Oh, no, I'm good. Thank you.
WOMAN: Okay.
MAN: You just put this right here.
WOMAN: All right.
MAN: And you can put the belt pack on yourself.
Oh. Okay. Thanks.
Linc said you helped raise KJ when he was a baby.
Yeah, I did.
I helped raise all my grandkids.
You know, Linc and Tayana
well, they kind of started out young,
like, you know, a lot of people do,
but you just do what you can to help.
You know, he went to the service.
Iraq. Kept us safe.
Did what he had to do and for him to come back
and for them to treat him like they do...
-Mom. -No. Now, you know that ain't right.
Now he did good by KJ.
He had him, going to one of those top schools, too.
On the pass.
A pass?
A pass is like a permit.
Yeah 'cause I worked in the district.
That was how I was able to get him into school.
BERNICE: Yeah, that KJ, he was a good boy.
I mean, he started, you know, acting out a little
when Tayana and Linc split.
But, I mean, that's normal for boys at age 13.
That's when you lose them.
But when he moved in with Linc, you know,
it settled him down.
A boy needs a man in his life.
I mean, he ought to have one.
I mean, how else is he supposed to know
what a man is supposed to act like
or if he's one himself?
That boy was all that Linc had
and they took him away.
For nothing.
I mean, if, if it would have happened,
you know, if he lived in this neighborhood,
it would have made more sense.
Make more sense how?
These young boys get beat down
by the cops or worse all the time.
More instances of police brutality in poor communities?
No, baby. More instances of police brutality
in Black communities.
-Seriously? -[LINC CHUCKLES]
LINC: Come on, I get these priceless moments.
-Why? -First day of school, new school.
Tell me how it went.
It was... It was crazy.
LINC: Okay, crazy good or crazy bad?
Crazy weird.
Lockers outside,
they play rap during lunch, which is hilarious.
LINC: Mmm-hmm.
Gucci Mane on the loudspeakers.
-LINC: Gucci! -[BOTH LAUGH]
White people everywhere, heads bobbin' off-beat.
It was like a Key and Peeleskit.
[BOTH LAUGH]
But everybody's cool.
A lot of them extra cool.
Probably just want to say they're hanging out
with the only black kid in school.
But no drama.
They have like these mini restaurants in the school.
And you can have just about anything you want.
And there wasn't even one fight all day.
[MELLOW MUSIC PLAYING]
How do you feel you two splitting up affected him?
[SIGHS]
It's hard to tell, but I'm sure it did.
You know, Tayana, she's...
She was such a great mother.
I mean, great mother
and we wanted to make it work.
But once I got back from the military,
everything changed.
You know, I had some... Some things I wanted to do when I got back.
Some dreams.
And people don't really talk about the thing you face
when you come home.
Financial hardships,
dealing with unemployment,
problems trying to get help from the VA.
You know, all that stuff can really hurt your pride.
Hmm, it just... It really took a toll on us.
Hmm.
Where did you serve?
Two tours in Iraq.
Twenty one months, all in all.
Wow. What did you do?
Infantry rifleman.
[EXHALES SHARPLY]
What was that like?
[CHUCKLES SOFTLY]
It was war.
I see he was into Malcolm.
Yeah, he was definitely into Malcolm.
Yeah, he asked a lot of questions,
and I tried to teach him a lot about
who he was knowing his history, his identity,
knowing his rights.
He was into it.
I mean, he even got the school to teach on the Black Panthers
during Black History Month.
Which was a really proud moment.
Did you ever talk to him about the police?
[SIGHS]
So you're saying by law,
you can resist the cops, like you can fight them back?
Yeah. If you didn't do nothing.
Who said that?
The US Supreme Court.
"One has an unalienable right to protect his life,
"liberty or property from unlawful attack or harm.
"Therefore, it's not an offense to liberate
"one from the unlawful custody of an officer."
So that's really what they're teaching with the white kids?
Hey, it sounds like bullshit to me.
That's 'cause you're stuck in the school
where they don't teach you shit.
If the cop don't conform to the law of the land,
I can resist and protect myself.
It's just the law.
What's up?
Hey, just studying for the government test tomorrow.
Studying, huh?
-What's up Mr. Linc. -What up, Jonah?
What were you just saying, just now?
Telling Jonah what we learned in class.
He don't believe it.
The law says you can defend yourself
from an unlawful attack from anybody
even the police, right?
-Well... -He's crazy, right, Mr. Linc?
-I mean, he's technically right. -Technically?
-Well, yes, in theory... -But the law is the law.
"A citizen illegally arrested
"cannot initiate the use of force,
"and neither do words alone justify an assault."
-Hey, KJ... -"However, when the officer
"initiates the assault by physical contact..."
-All right listen to me. -"...which is the case..."
-What I'm trying to tell you... -"There's an unlawful..."
-There is a difference... -"...arrest, there, a citizen
"has a right to protect his liberty, to the extent
-"of killing the officer--" -Look... Stop, all right? Stop!
Don't say those words.
All right. Don't even think them.
Hey, um, I'll call you back later.
No, no, no. Stay on, Jonah. You need to hear this too.
Look, citizens have rights, yes.
There are all kinds of laws and documents and cases that say so.
But the citizens they're talking about
don't always look like us.
Especially not to the police.
-But the Supreme Court... -I understand that.
What you need to understand is those laws
weren't written with us in mind.
And anyone that tells you differently, is either white
or just lucky they haven't had to put it to the test yet.
So I'm just supposed to forget everything you ever told me
about self-respect and dignity
and standing up for what I believe in?
Yes, yes. If it means you're coming home to me safely, absolutely.
I know it doesn't make sense to you now,
but one day when you have kids
it'll be crystal clear, trust me.
Look at me.
When you're dealing with the police
you don't think of laws.
You don't think of rights. None of that.
You just do whatever they say, their way. All right?
That way you will live.
Could live to make it home to me.
You understand?
What's up, guys?
-[CHUCKLES] -JORDIN: Wow.
-LINC: Nice, huh? -Yeah.
Nadir.
LINC: This is what you get.
It was well worth it, you know.
Anyone would want their kids to go here.
No one dreams of coming out of the service
and becoming a custodian,
but I knew I had to do something to get him out of the situation he was in.
Wanted to take advantage of the opportunities here
and when I asked, you know, how to get him in,
first thing they said is "You gotta live here,
"or have a job here.".
The houses start at a million dollars,
so I knew that wasn't gonna happen.
So I applied.
JORDIN: Why do you think you stayed after, um...
After a year and a half?
-Why I stayed? -Yeah.
[SIGHS]
[CHUCKLES]
I don't know. Routine.
[BLOWS AIR]
Get that bucket.
[TV CHATTERING INDISTINCTLY]
How are you and Linc related?
We're brothers, not blood brothers.
We are blood brother, it's not biological, as I put it.
How'd you meet?
Overseas. Same squad, same fire team.
Lincoln and I actually grew up near each other.
Just never met.
[CHUCKLES]
It's something else.
But, you know, same old story.
Came up hard, was no kind of student.
You mess up enough times
it's only a matter of time before you get locked up.
How old are you?
I'm 21.
When I was a little bit younger than you,
I went into the Marines.
You served in the Middle East together.
-We did. -Can you elaborate?
Nah.
It's kind of crazy how hard
it is to get people to talk about it.
Yeah, you have to live it to understand why.
You were in the hospital.
[SIGHS] Yeah, chemo.
Last treatment was this morning.
Wow. Congrats, man.
I didn't say I beat it.
I said it was the last treatment.
First and last.
I looked like shit.
I feel like shit. I ain't doing that again.
Doctors say it metastasized.
-Meaning... -I-I know what it means.
Hmm.
So anyway, yeah, I figured why lose my hair, you know?
If I lose weight, dying before it kills me...
Nah, I ain't got long.
I'll just ride it out.
I'm sorry.
It is what it is.
Got it right here.
This is it.
It is what it is.
Don't you ever forget that. It is what it is.
LINC: All right, all right. Let's go.
Oh, you're good, bro. We'll be back.
JORDIN: Linc, can you give a little background on what's happening?
Into the camera?
Yeah, we're headed to the courthouse
for the grand jury decision
and, uh, we are optimistic
and we hope it goes our way.
-Good? -JORDIN: Good.
All right. All right, let's go, let's go.
Let's head out.
-What do we want? -ALL: Justice.
-When do we want it? -ALL: Now!
-What do we want? -ALL: Justice.
-When do we want it? -ALL: Now!
-What do we want? -ALL: Justice.
-When do we want it? -ALL: Now!
-What do we want? -ALL: Justice.
-When do we want it? -ALL: Now!
-What do we want? -ALL: Justice.
-When do we want it? -ALL: Now!
-What do we want? -ALL: Justice.
We're here live outside the LA County courthouse.
Where, as you can see behind me,
both protesters and police supporters are waiting
to see if Officer Mike Randall will be indicted
on charges stemming from last year's shooting
of 14-year old Kajani Jefferson.
CROWD: Justice for Kajani!
Justice for Kajani!
-CROWD: Justice for Kajani. -Back the blue.
-CROWD: Justice for Kajani! -Back the blue!
CROWD: Justice for Kajan!
Justice for Kajani!
After their exhaustive review of the evidence,
the grand jury deliberated over two days,
making their final decision.
They determined that no probable cause exists
to file any charges against Officer Randall.
They returned a no true bill on each of the five claims.
-The physical... -Officer Randall will be returning to service
effective immediately according to standard protocol in such cases.
Excuse me, Officer.
Listen, I need to talk to you, I just need to know why.
Can you just tell me why? Please don't...
So you're gonna shoot me?
Is that what you're gonna do shoot me, right?
Because I have a gun, right?
Because I'm a threat, right?
You coward!
You hide behind that badge.
You're a coward!
I lost my baby. [CRYING HYSTERICALLY]
[BANGING]
Ah, man.
It's okay.
[LINC SOBBING]
It's gonna be all right.
[VOMITING]
[GASPING]
You're all right. You're all right.
-Okay? -[PANTING]
[SPITTING]
You'll be all right.
REPORTER: The announcement of a grand jury's decision
not to indict San Vacilo police officer Mike Randall
in the shooting death of unarmed teen Kajani Jefferson
was met with chaos on Tuesday night.
[POLICE SIREN WAILS]
[SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY]
[PEOPLE CLAMORING]
[HELICOPTER HOVERING]
[SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY]
[SMASHING]
Miss Jefferson, I need your help.
Uh, the city need your help.
Make a statement on camera.
Tell the community that violence is not the way.
JAYDEN: Man, do you hear yourself?
Talking all that no violence bullshit.
Y'all niggas should have thought about that shit
before y'all killed my cousin, man.
Can you please turn that off?
Can you please get the fuck out!
Jayden, stop!
[CAPTAIN MORRIS CLEARS THROAT]
Look, I can only imagine
-how you're feeling right now... -Do you have kids?
-Yes, ma'am. -Mmm.
-Two little girls. -Are they breathing?
-Hmm? -[SIGHS]
You couldn't possibly imagine how I feel.
You have no idea how I feel.
-You're right. -I know.
-Yes, ma'am, you're right. -Mmm-hmm.
And I'm truly sorry for your loss,
but we can't change the past.
Man, fuck you.
What the fuck! Now you want to talk all this peace shit?
So no one else gets hurt?
Where the fuck was all that when y'all killed KJ, huh?
-Fuck, nigga. -CAPTAIN MORRIS: Look, young man,
-I'm gonna need you to calm down. -Man, I don't give a fuck.
-Don't "young man" me. None of that shit! -Right now.
I don't give a fuck.
-You work in public service, motherfucker. -Calm down!
What the fuck?
Y'all see this, right?
I'm right here in my auntie's house. Right?
I ain't got no gun. None of that.
Just chilling in my auntie's house. All right.
Trying to have... Trying to have a normal conversation
and they want to kill me like they did KJ.
TAYANA: Jayden, stop!
JAYDEN: You wanna kill me right here in my auntie house?
-This is not helping. -JAYDEN: Answer the question.
Huh? Answer the question, nigga.
You wanna kill me like you did my cousin?
I'm trying to fix things.
You see this picture right here, bro?
[CAPTAIN MORRIS SIGHS]
JAYDEN: Fourteen years old.
That's my blood, bro.
-CAPTAIN MORRIS: I understand... -You lived your life.
-CAPTAIN MORRIS: I understand...-You lived your life already,
-old ass nigga. -CAPTAIN MORRIS: This is not gonna help.
-This is my little cousin. -This is not helping.
This is not helping.
I understand you're upset,
but I'm here to help.
You ain't here to do shit.
I'm not the enemy here, okay?
Please, everybody, let's just take a second.
Take a breath.
At least step over there, sir.
-Can you step out? -They're fine.
-They ain't fine. -They're fine.
-[INAUDIBLE] -JAYDEN: Get the fuck out of my aunties house, bro.
-We'll have the cameras here... -Okay.
-...in an hour. -JAYDEN: What the fuck.
-[CLEARS THROAT] -JAYDEN: Ain't making no fucking statements.
-TAYANA: Jayden. -JAYDEN: Fuck wrong with 'em.
-TAYANA: Jayden. -JAYDEN: We ain't doing none of that.
-TAYANA: Jayden! -Bye!
Bye, Uncle Tom.
-TAYANA: Stop! -Weird ass nigga.
-MAN ON TV: What we want? -CROWD: Justice.
-MAN: When do we want it? -CROWD: Now!
-MAN: What we want? -CROWD: Justice!
-MAN: When do we want it? -CROWD: Now!
As we all know, I...
I lost my son over a year ago.
I had to bury my only son.
Now, we did not get the indictment that we hoped for.
And justice was not served yet.
And all we want is peace.
That's all we want.
[SIGHS]
So we need to stop the rioting
and we need to stop the violence.
Violence took his ass from us.
You see this, how it goes?
You understand?
A cop killed another one of our babies.
People want answers.
People mad as hell. They ready to tear shit up?
The first thing they do, they put the mom on the TV.
That's the way they figure if a child's mother
ain't ready to see shit burned down,
then why should anyone else. Shit is diabolical.
We don't want revenge.
We want justice.
They kill my son and they go right back to work.
I can't do shit about it.
[INHALES SHARPLY]
I ain't shit, man.
It ain't for nothing, bro.
[TAPS]
[SIGHS]
[SNIFFS]
[MELLOW MUSIC PLAYING]
Where are we headed now?
Courthouse.
Tayana's filed a petition to get the police chief dismissed.
Petition.
Sometimes those things work
if enough people sign them, right?
[BREAKS SQUEAK]
JORDIN: Where are we now?
At a friend's house. I gotta pick something up.
You got your license on you, right?
JORDIN: Yeah, of course.
I need you to drive for a little bit.
At least till we get downtown.
Feeling a little off.
Maybe sit in the back and get some fresh air.
-JORDIN: Yeah. Yeah, I could drive. -Yeah? You don't mind?
JORDIN: No, I could drive.
Kai, you can sit in the front if you want.
KAI: Cool.
JORDIN: Really, Kai?
-[KAI CHUCKLES] -[JORDIN SCOFFS] Lazy.
NADIR: I'm gonna cut. I need a battery change.
JORDIN: All right.
[SIGHS]
KAI: What time is it?
9:30.
-KAI: Call him. -I already did.
KAI: Should we go knock?
JORDIN: Hold on.
[DOOR SLAMS]
JORDIN: Oh, shit.
Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit.
-Don't do this. -Shut up.
JORDIN: What are you doing? Linc, what are you doing?
LINC: Drive. Drive!
Okay, okay. Hang in there.
[TIRES SCREECHING]
JORDIN: I'm trying to, but don't wanna get involved.
We should get out and run.
NADIR: Run? Are you fucking kidding me?
They've got fucking machine guns.
What are you doing? Put that away!
-NADIR: What are you doing? -Put it away.
[PHONE BEEPS]
-[DIAL TONE SOUNDING] -JORDIN: Stop.
MAN ON PHONE: 911 what's your emergency?
[NADIR EXCLAIMING]
What are you doing?
Huh?
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
You want to make a documentary, right?
Well, now you're making one.
Hear me when I say this because I'm only gonna say it once.
Don't stop filming.
Put these on.
Let's go.
LINC: Let's go. Let's go. Let's go. Let's go.
[GUN COCKING]
[GUN FIRING]
Hold your fire.
[GUNS FIRING]
I swear, if I hear one more shot...
Hear one more shot I'm gonna shoot your captain,
Captain Morris, in his head.
It's Eugene. Stop shooting!
OFFICER: Captain. What the fuck is going on?
Captain? What do we do?
Stand down.
Our friends will be outside soon.
They'll get it under control.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
LINC: This is what we're gonna do.
You wanna see his head, I want to see your hands.
Hands. It's okay. Hands.
Easy.
Hands up.
[LINC SIGHS]
[INTENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
[SIREN BLARING]
[TIRES SCREECHING]
[INAUDIBLE]
You remember me?
Put the fucking phone away.
Put it down.
No, I didn't mean to shoot your son.
You knew he was unarmed.
You pointed your gun at him, and you pulled the trigger.
No, I didn't... [SIGHS]
No, I didn't mean to kill him.
Linc.
You scared?
Are you afraid?
Thinking about your family, huh?
About how you don't want to die?
About how you're too young?
Answer me, motherfucker.
This won't fix it.
Not this.
It'll make it worse...
For all of us.
[INHALES]
Heavily armed men have stormed
the San Vasillo Police Department
taking hostage at least a dozen police officers.
As you can see, SWAT has arrived and are taking positions
as rampant confusion spreads surrounding the identity
and motives of the suspects involved.
[HELICOPTER HOVERING]
[TELEPHONE RINGING]
[OMAR SIGHS]
Phone ringing like crazy in there, brother.
Think they're trying to get you on the line, you know?
[PHONE RINGING]
Yeah.
I'm in charge.
Lincoln Jefferson.
Father of Kajani Jefferson,
fourteen year old black boy who was killed by Officer Michael Randall
last year, July 3rd.
Everyone's fine.
I said everyone's fine.
I want my son.
I want my son! I want my son! I want my son! I want my son!
You're not hearing me. You're asking me questions.
You're not hearing me. You asked me what I want.
I want my son. Okay?
So call me when you can bring me that.
All right?
[CLEARS THROAT]
[SIREN WAILING]
[DOOR SLAMS]
On our way up here I saw a set of doors
I think they missed. It might lead outside.
Kai, for the 10th time they got machine guns.
You saw what they did out there.
You've said that before.
What are we supposed to do? Just wait in here until they start executing people?
I don't think that's what he wants.
Well, we're hostages, and I don't think he's planning on letting us go anytime.
Well, technically they're hostages and we're the film crew?
Let's just do what he says.
Film what he wants us to film.
You're backing up to the cards?
I just finished the other two right now.
All right. If you get the WiFi, just dump it to the cloud. Okay?
Look, if it gets cut off, we'll figure it out.
What is it with you and this guy?
What? We're here. Let's just get it.
[PHONE RINGING]
[SIGHS]
-Hey. -Where are you?
City Hall.
I know what you're gonna say, but...
Are you okay?
Is anybody hurt? Are you okay?
I'm fine. Everybody's fine.
Okay. Well, it's all over social media and the news.
They haven't mentioned your name yet,
but it's just a matter of time, baby.
If you just... If you just give up now...
-I'm not. -Listen.
You are all I have that connects me to KJ.
Somebody's gotta pay for what they did to him. All right?
What they did to our son...
-We have to do this peacefully.-Why we gotta do it peacefully?
Huh?
Why are we the only people in this country
that are expected to do things without violence?
You know what white people do when they're cross?
They kill people. They don't march.
They don't do protests. They don't ask for permission.
They don't ask no questions. They react with force.
I served, I know.
I know how it goes for everybody except us.
We're the only people expected to take it on the cheek
and to take it on the other cheek and walk it off.
Look at me.
[EXHALES]
You have to stay alive for me, baby.
[EXHALES SHARPLY]
He is gone, baby,
Baby, he is gone.
What do you want me to do?
I want you to come back home. Home, home.
Home, baby. With me.
Okay? We'll just start over. We'll...
We'll figure it out. We can work through this together.
Me and you, we can.
Okay?
So just promise me
that you'll make it through this.
That you will make it through this
and that you'll stay alive no matter what, Lincoln.
-Promise me that... -[BEEPS]
Tayana...
Lincoln, it's Steve, the negotiator.
We shut down the signal partially to your cell.
You're not gonna get a call in or out moving forward.
It's not too late to find a way out of it.
[SIGHS]
I know you're angry, like you feel justice wasn't served.
You wanted to try. You didn't get one.
We can't change that now. That ship has sailed.
What we can do now is move forward.
[PHONE BEEPS]
Round everyone up. Get him right here in the main hall.
Alright, cops first.
We're gonna lock them to them desks over there.
Those of you who know why I'm here,
you know what I've lost.
And, you know because of flaws in our system,
justice was not served.
So today,
today we make that right.
Today, Officer Michael Randall will be tried
for the murder of my son, Kajani Jefferson.
-What? -Absolutely not.
Sit down!
Facts will be presented. Evidence will be considered,
and a verdict will be handed down.
Look, the court already spoke...
No, the court spoke for him, didn't speak for my son.
All right.
How many civilians we got?
Counted six.
Which of you works processing? Computers?
Cut him loose. He's coming with us.
If I say your name, come forward.
-What the fuck? -Oh, hell no.
-What the fuck is this? -Calm down.
Are you fucking insane? You're gonna let these motherfuckers out?
Relax. They're non-violent offenders.
And trust me, you're gonna wanna be nice to 'em.
Ah, you lost your fucking mind.
-What do we got? -We got a janitor.
We got two secretaries. We got a clerk.
Parking attendant. What is it that you do here, miss?
I was just here to pay a parking ticket.
And a responsible young lady.
All right.
Officer Michael Randall, you're being charged with murder.
Fuck you.
You know you can't charge me.
You want to guess what the alternative is?
This is your jury.
Look at them.
These are the people that will be the deciders of your fate.
They will listen to your story, hear from others
who were involved in the shooting, and they'll deliberate.
For some reason, if they find a shadow of a doubt,
you walk out of here a free man, and I turn myself in.
Yeah. A free man. [CHUCKLES]
This is bullshit.
Captain!
No officers.
Not one officer on the jury.
You know, these aren't my peers.
Welcome to my world.
So I take it, you're the prosecutor.
I'm the one to speak for my son. Yeah.
So who defends him?
Sounds like you already volunteered.
Okay. We'll play your game. For now.
Okay, um, anyone ever served on a jury?
I was a foreman.
Okay, good, well, I need your help
walking the others through the process. Okay?
Look, I know you didn't ask for this, and I'm sorry to put it on you,
but the next several hours will be very important
because at the end of that, you're gonna have to vote,
and those votes will determine a man's fate.
You for real, bro?
You gonna let all of us vote on what happens to a cop?
LINC: Think you can be fair?
You know where I'm from, homie?
You know all the shit I've seen the cops do?
All the shit they done put me through?
I'll try.
That's good enough. Anyone else?
What are you gonna do to him
if it's decided he was in the wrong?
I don't know yet.
Do you all think you can be fair and impartial,
regardless of the consequences?
The real question, my brother,
is will you go all the way with the consequences if we do?
I approached the driver's side window
and asked the driver for his license and registration.
He proceeded to pull the documentation from his glove box
and handed me an insurance card that I could see was expired.
He asked to look again for another copy of the card.
But it being dark, I feared for the safety of myself and my partner.
So I pulled him from the vehicleand attempted to retrieve the active document myself.
When you previously told this story and this time too,
you said you were given a card that was expired,
which I saw gave the idea to the general public
that the car was uninsured.
Unfortunately, sir, I don't control what the general public thinks.
But you do remember me saying repeatedly the car was insured?
Yes. But when...
But you did not give me an opportunity to re-check the glove box?
No. And I've told you why.
After the shooting, did they find out the car was insured?
-Yes, I believe they did. -Was it?
It was.
In your own words, what happened that night in July?
Start from the beginning.
We were driving south bound on Virginia Avenue
just after shift change.
Officer Hollander and myself saw the white Civic
cross the intersection at an elevated speed.
-[SIRENS APPROACHING] -Upon pulling over the vehicle,
Officer Hollander called in to request backup.
After directing the car to the side,
we approached the car to find two black males.
-You and the deceased. -Kajani.
That's his name.
Yeah.
-And then we... -No, you approached the car
to find me and Kajani Jefferson. Say it with his name.
We approached the car to find you
and Kajani Jefferson seated in the driver side and passenger respectively.
-Approached from where? -The passenger's side.
-Close to Kajani? -Yes.
Continue.
The driver then provided an expired insurance card.
There was a small altercation around whether the car was indeed insured.
It was at that time, Hollander asked him to exit the car.
And then what?
Hollander proceeded to search the driver.
When that's when Kajani reached for something out of my sight.
-You pulled your gun? -Yes.
You don't know what someone could have underneath their seat.
Do you remember me saying repeatedly
can I reached past my 14-year-old son?
Yes, but a 14...
A 14-year-old could still be grabbing for a gun.
But it wasn't a gun, was it?
-No, no. It was his phone. -So you put your gun away?
No, we're taught not to de-escalate.
No, once a gun is drawn, it's drawn
-for safety. -For whose safety?
That's what we're taught.
And then what happened?
He wouldn't stop recording.
And so I pulled him...
Kajani out of the car.
-Put it down! -I have the right to film.
Exit the car and put your hands in the air!
-KJ, put the phone down! -I can film.
-Put the phone down! -Exit the fucking car!
LINC: It's just a cellphone. Easy. It's just a cellphone.
I need you to put the phone away.
Put the phone away and sit on the curb.
-He's unarmed. Okay? -Just put your phone away.
Put your fucking phone away!
-Hey! Hey! -Put your fucking phone away!
-Get off him! -[GUN FIRES]
After the shots, what happened?
No, no, no! [CRIES]
I got in my car and went to my house.
You went to your house?
That's protocol.
After a shooting, you go home.
You wait for your superiors to arrive.
Okay. Okay.
You said the suspect sped through the intersection.
-Yes. -You're still saying I was speeding?
-Did you clock him? -No, we didn't clock him,
but you could tell he was at a higher speed than what was posted.
If they weren't speeding, would you have pulled them over?
No.
So if the driver had the proper insurance card, what would have happened?
We would have let him go.
Kajani Jefferson might be alive today.
What kind of bullshit justification is that?
Seriously, since when do jury members speak?
The only job that they have is to keep their mouth shut.
Guess what, you're not in control.
But there's a reason why courts do things the way they do.
And how is that working out for us?
Anyone who wants to speak, feel free to speak.
Throughout this process, everyone who wants a voice will have one.
Are you allowed to pull someone over for speeding without knowing their actual speed?
-An officer can use judgment. -What is that, the law?
Or do you just make it up as you go?
No, we don't.
You see, nobody knows what our job is like.
Twenty-four seven, get the bad guys.
And we can all sit here and pretend all we want that...
[SIGHS IN EXASPERATION]
That all the Blacks that get killed are killed by police,
and that they're all unarmed and that they're all good people
and that they're all just, you know...
I don't know, that the cops are the only ones running around
trying to kill 'em, but it's not true.
Couldn't be further from the truth.
Everyone knows the statistics on Black on Black crime.
How many Blacks are killed in a year by other Blacks?
They don't put those numbers in the news.
Do you have the statistics on whites killing whites in a year?
Or Chinese killing Chinese?
Whites and the Chinese aren't the ones cramming the prison system.
They're also not the ones brought over here like property.
Hundreds of years ago.
And what does that have to do with anything that we're talking about?
You don't find it interesting that the people
brought over here in chains are still in chains?
No. No, I don't. Okay?
The slavery thing is a fucking cop out.
It happened. Get over it.
It ain't my job to make sense of it.
It's my job... It's our job to get the bad people off the street.
Black, white, whatever color.
Systematic violence and terror aimed at one group of people.
And you just said, get over it. Would you say that about the Holocaust?
Or women's rights?
-It's not the same. -How is that different?
The things women have been through in this country,
in the military, on the force.
Are you supporting his side?
I'm supporting my side.
I'm a cop, and I dare anyone in here to question my loyalty to that.
But I'm also a woman, a Latina woman at that,
so I know how things in the past affect things happening now.
I can see that, you know, for women
and definitely for the Holocaust. But for them?
Why is it so hard for you to empathize with Black people?
Because you guys make it hard.
That's more of that racist shit right there.
OFFICER HOLLANDER: No, that.
That's the fucking problem. That's the problem in this country.
Anytime someone speaks the truth, they're labeled a racist.
Let me tell you something. The KKK is racist.
Nazis are racist.
So the only people that could be racist are those that are in the KKK or the Nazis?
Anybody else? Anybody else by default is cool is what you're saying.
I mean, like, fuck. Even right now, I feel like I might say the wrong thing.
And I'm not racist. I know that. I don't see color.
You color blind?
You know what I mean.
You said you're color blind.
I mean, I don't treat people differently based on the color of their skin.
Any one of these guys will tell you that.
I've had partners of all colors.
And, you know, frankly, I haven't met many racist cops.
-We have a black captain, for Christ sakes. -Meaning what?
Meaning that it's fucking impossible for us to be racist.
Impossible. That's like saying it's impossible to be sexist
'cause you're married to a woman.
Programming is programming.
When a person buys into a system or a culture
that teaches that racism, that dominance,
that person, if they Black, they white, Chinese...
-Oh, come on. -...whatever color they are,
they proudly reflect that culture in every situation.
So, what you're saying is that it's possible
for a black cop to be racist towards another black,
to target him, or shoot him based on a bias.
Hell, yeah, he'll probably shoot him twice.
That's bullshit. Come on, you guys, you...
[SCOFFS] Fuck, never mind.
No, Go on. Say your piece.
I'm just saying, you guys wanna cry race?
But a lot of the things that black people have to deal with
is based on the way black people act.
Look at hip hop music.
What is it? Uh...
"Drug the hoe, get the hoe, shoot the bitch, do the..."
Whatever the fuck. What do you expect?
And you think I want my daughter
to hang around with people that think that way?
I mean, let alone come to my house. Hell, no!
INMATE: But you let your kids listen to it and buy it, right?
Those are the dollars that keep it getting made.
White people buy the music that blacks pay for with our lives.
The black kids think they have to live that life
to make the music, so your daughter can go buy it.
It's a cycle. It happens again and again and again.
What are you saying? This is our fault?
He's making a point.
No matter how bullshit the music is,
y'all appropriate it, fetishize it.
The demand rises, the profits rise,
the sales rise.
Then it's just blacks and Latinos exploited for the supply.
[SIGHS] Man...
You all just reach and reach.
Or maybe Blacks and Latinos aren't all victims.
Maybe they are the actual thugs
that they're saying they are in their music.
[INMATE SPEAKING SPANISH]
Nah. You don't know me, homie.
You don't know anything about me, bro.
[SPEAKING SPANISH]
I'm crushing my people? I'm crushing my people,
you fucking cartel wannabe!
Huh? You think you know me? You think you know me?
You think you know anything about me? Huh?
Fucking, your gang tattoos.
You think you're all fucking hard, huh?
Killing, pushing drugs, selling little girls.
And you think you're fucking better than me?
No, dawg, You don't know me, homie.
You don't know shit about me, huh?
Fucking, you make it impossible
for fucking Hispanic or Latino people
to get ahead in this fucking country,
'cause all they see is you,
and your fucking tattoos,
and your fucking gangster shit.
[SPEAKING SPANISH]
Fuck you.
OFFICER HOLLANDER: Kind of proves my point.
Two Hispanic guys arguing. It's heated.
But is it racial? No.
Black guys, white guys, Hispanic guys.
The thing that separates us isn't race.
It's class, it's education.
You have kids?
Yeah, I got two girls.
They go to public school?
No. I work my ass off so they don't have to.
Why? Why not public school? What's wrong with that?
I mean, if all a person has to do
is get an education,
then why does it matter where they get it?
You know why.
Because private schools are built like colleges.
And public schools,
where little brown and black kids are,
they're built like prisons.
So, it's no surprise
when private school kids go to college.
And public schools, like where I grew up,
they don't even graduate kids
on their way to locking them up.
And that is a race problem,
Officer.
[SCOFFS] But that's America, right?
We don't fix the system,
just put a premium on the way to get around it.
You think only black people have to deal with that?
No. We just sit in the worst position to beat it.
Which is why I sacrificed everything I had
to put my son in a better position.
Taking him out of where he was,
and putting him into a place where he could survive.
Well, guess what? It wasn't enough.
I couldn't save him.
I couldn't save my boy, not from him.
And why couldn't he have just complied?
None of you ever comply.
'Cause we're fucking tired!
We're tired of being stalked and intimidated
and getting our asses kicked whenever you feel like it.
That attitude is why that shit happens.
If you all just took a second to think,
then maybe you'd avoid all that shit.
If all of you took a second to think,
maybe you wouldn't kill so many of us.
I didn't mean to kill your son.
-But you did. -I did what I was trained to do.
There was a threat. And I was... I was scared.
Which we're trained. We're trained to go home. That's the...
I have a kid at home, too.
Whatever, I am a human being, just like anybody else.
You know, every, every day, I, I go to work,
and I want to go home to my kids.
I want to see my son.
I had a split second to decide
whether you were going to attack my partner
or your kid was gonna reach for his gun.
I didn't wanna get shot. I wanted to go home.
We wanted to go home, too.
[SIGHS]
This is my son.
This is my little boy.
This is what was taken from me. [SOBS]
He didn't ask to be born. He didn't ask to be black.
And he didn't ask to get shot.
Look at him. Look at him!
I'm never gonna be able to hug my son again.
Never gonna see him get married or have children.
Officer Randall took that from me.
The world took that from me.
I just want justice.
That's all I want.
I just want justice. He took it from me.
But you, you can give it back.
SGT. REYES: Why can't you just accept responsibility,
that you put your son in that situation
by breaking the law
and going over the posted speed limit.
What speed were we going?
The speed. What speed were we going?
You pulled us over 'cause we were speeding, right?
What speed were we going when you pulled us over?
It was over a year ago.
You want me to remind...
We'll get the report. Get the report, Derwood.
RANDALL: It's not in the report.
-Why not? -Because I didn't record it.
I registered it based on what I remember.
Okay, what did you see? What was the speed?
I mean, it's residential, so it's 25 miles-per-hour, right?
-I don't know. -You don't know?
You were there, right? Same car, same time.
What was the speed? What? 45, 50?
Forty-five, 50, seems right.
Yeah. You sure?
Not exactly, no. I don't remember.
Well, I do remember.
I do remember, 'cause I was there, too.
I've played it over a thousand times in my mind,
trying to think about all the reasons
why this thing went wrong.
We were crossing Virginia
at Lombardi, residential area.
Twenty-five miles- per-hour posted.
Which is why 45 would have seemed very--
Not when there's speed bumps 20 feet apart
on each side of the intersection.
We were not speeding up, were we, Officer Randall?
We were slowing down.
Just long enough for you to see two black men
driving through that prestigious neighborhood.
SGT. REYES: Race has nothing to do with it.
Are you standing by your story that we were speeding?
-SGT. REYES: It's an officer's-- -Officer Randall!
Are you standing by your story
that we were speeding?
What do you expect?
You were driving in that neighborhood
in that crappy car, which is suspicious.
You went there after 12:00 midnight.
Who's driving around in that neighborhood after midnight?
[STAMMERING] People are coming home, yes.
But most of the people
driving around in that situation
are bad people, looking to do bad things.
-So you profiled us. -You are damn right I did.
[RANDALL BREATHING HEAVILY]
Like, you get pissed off
if your car gets broken into, right?
You get pissed off if your house gets burglarized.
But how are we supposed to find those bad people
if we're not pulling people over?
The only way to find these bad people
is by pulling them over.
We pull them over, we see burglary tools, stolen mail.
Worse, nine times out of ten,
see, in that situation, something's up.
Do you want to be... Do you want to be safe?
You want to be kept safe? We keep you safe.
That's the cost.
And there it is.
So, if the officers didn't profile that man and his son...
That man and his son make it home at night.
And Kajani Jefferson might be alive today.
[RANDALL SOBBING]
-No, no... Get down, get down! -[OFFICERS SHOUTING]
LINC: Get down.
Come on, bitch. You're the guy that took me in,
following me with your fake ass charge.
Fuck you, you gangster fucking piece of shit!
Fuck you, bitch.
You fucking talk shit and you get a beating!
INMATE: Come on. Come on, fight me.
Settle down. Settle down, man.
LINC: Get him back to his cell.
All right, let me help you up.
Yeah, okay.
MAN: Let me help, come on.
No, wait!
[GRUNTING]
-Come on, now. -Fuck!
OFFICER 2: Get the fuck off me!
Get off me!
Linc.
LINC: Oh, shit.
-Stay down. -Shit.
LINC: You all right?
[MAN GROANING]
LINC: Hey, hey, hey.
Sit down.
Come over here, sit down.
-[MAN GROANING] -LINC: You all right?
Ugh, better than all right, nephew.
LINC: Yeah, it went through.
[GROANING]
-LINC: We gotta get him outta here. -DERWOOD: Yeah.
No, it's not gonna happen.
LINC: All I gotta do is call.
Look, Uncle, listen to me.
If it hit an artery or something, we can't stop it.
Don't matter what happen to me.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
I'm old. I've been around a long time.
And because of you,
I get to live.
[GROANS] So, hell no, I ain't going nowhere.
-You understand? -LINC: Yes, sir.
Go on, get back to it.
DERWOOD: I got him, Linc. I got him.
CAPTAIN MORRIS: Lincoln.
You need to end this.
Nothing good is gonna come
out of what you're doing here.
You've imprisoned cops,
and allowed them to be attacked by inmates.
You've taken civilians hostage.
You've got an injured comrade,
and you've got World War III outside.
On top of all that, your experiment is done.
Your 12th juror is gone...
So turn it in, so no one else gets hurt.
JORDIN: I think he's right.
Jordin. You're up.
-What? -You're the 12th Juror. Come on.
-No, Linc. I can't-- -I'm not asking.
He's biased.
I'm not biased.
This is a bad move, Linc.
We're moving this thing forward.
Vote your conscience.
Take as much time as you need.
KAI: Are you okay?
I don't wanna be in the middle of this.
None of us do. But we're here now,
and it's like he said.
Whatever happens, just vote your conscience.
Hey, kid...
Just remember what's at stake here.
So, guilty.
And not guilty.
Well, it's all or nothing.
Maybe we don't vote.
Will you be the one to go out there and tell him we're gonna refuse.
TAMMI: We have to treat this like we would if we were outside.
We rehash the facts,
determine if he broke the law.
He broke the law when he profiled.
That doesn't mean he planned to kill that kid.
It doesn't have to,
by his own words, it's plain and simple,
He should have never been in that position.
It's not plain. It's not simple.
It's a police officer's life,
his family, his reputation.
Reputation. Are you serious right now?
Talking about fucking reputation?
It's funny how you wanna talk about reputation now.
They don't talk about reputation
when they sending Blacks and Latinos away for life.
All right, we need to stay productive, here.
You just need to stay on point, okay?
And let's be clear, we're not sentencing him.
We're just determining guilt.
Now, why do you think he is not guilty?
Pulling someone over is the most dangerous action
a cop does on a daily basis.
That's just dangerous.
INMATE: So you'll be blind to the fact
that it became dangerous because he thought he was black?
PARKING ATTENDANT: Are we here to determine if the cop broke the law?
INMATE: We're here to find the truth, homeboy.
We're here to find the truth.
[SIGHS]
You good?
Yeah, I'm all right.
You?
I'm cool.
Well, this needs closure, man.
We'll get it.
One way or another.
I still don't know why they let him leave the crime scene.
Doesn't everyone else have to make a statement right away?
-Right? -He was getting the story straight.
JANET: Or maybe just to get him away
to help him calm down.
Killing a kid must be traumatizing.
But seeing your child killed has to be traumatic, too.
You have thoughts, Jordin?
I mean, I'm not sure we're gonna get anywhere
if everyone doesn't contribute
and add something here.
I grew up middle class.
I actually have an uncle who was a cop,
and, I believe, a good man.
So, um...
I've been a little conflicted.
It's hard for me to believe that all cops are bad.
Do I think that police have a dangerous job? Of course.
Do I think that Officer Randall
woke up that morning
thinking about killing someone's kid? No.
Can I say, without a shadow of a doubt,
that race was the driving force around
Kajani Jefferson being killed?
I don't know.
I look around this precinct
and I see stickers and banners that say,
"Back the blue" and "Support our police."
Things left over from the backlash of Kajani getting killed.
But I haven't seen anything acknowledging
that a kid lost his life.
A citizen who was expected to be a patriot.
How can anyone who has this...
This history of pain and poverty
and subjugation be expected to be
a patriot, proud to be an American,
only to be shot down because of their American skin?
And how could anyone patriotic ignore these killings
and yet pride themselves on being a part of a great nation?
Great nations aren't great because they oppress,
but because they liberate,
not because they kill, but because they heal.
Police and soldiers
should be the gatekeepers of that truth
and should protect it with their lives.
Fuck, man, this fucking sucks.
This really actually fucking sucks.
It sucks. People are dying. Kids are dying.
I don't wanna hear another story of a black kid
killed by a cop.
Yeah, I don't wanna hear how [SNIFFLES]
the cop did the right thing
no matter the circumstances,
and I don't wanna have to see another mother and father
just grieving and powerless and pushed to the point with...
Where they're willing to give their own lives.
[SNIFFLES] So if it means us
doing the right thing
will make this man have to suffer.
If it means us having to hold him accountable
so that police everywhere would just
take a beat
before they make his mistake...
then so be it.
[MAN EXHALES]
[COUGHING]
They're ready, nephew.
Officer Michael Randall
in the murder of Kajani Jefferson,
we, the jury, find you...
guilty.
[PEOPLE MURMURING]
SGT. REYES: What does that mean?
-What did you do, huh? -Hey, hey!
What did you do?
-OFFICER 1: Don't, don't do this. -OFFICER 2: What are you doing?
On his knees.
[OFFICER YELLING INDISTINCTLY]
Is this yours?
Yes.
Call your wife and kid.
Call them
on video.
[PHONE LINE RINGING]
My, God. Thank God.
-Yeah, baby. -Honey.
Are you okay? You coming out? Is everything okay?
No, I don't think I'm coming out.
What's going on, baby? What's going on?
I've got someone here who wants to talk to you.
He's taking the phone from me.
Dad.
Hey, buddy.
Are you okay?
I'm good. Your picture's on TV.
When are you coming home?
You know I...
I love you, kid.
All right. You gotta... You take care of your mom.
[SNIFFLES]
Mike, Mike, you're scaring him. What's going on?
I'm not gonna make it out of it.
What? What are you talking about? No, no, no, no, no.
Don't talk like that.
You know, I made a mistake,
and, uh...
No, no, no, no, no. Mike, listen to me.
I'm coming, okay?
In two seconds, right now.
I... I love you.
I'm gonna get Jason. I'm gonna come to you right now.
-I love you so much. -I'm gonna come to you right now.
Look...[SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY]
[ALL SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY]
[GUN CLICKS]
[CRYING]
That indescribable feeling
I've been carrying the last year and a half.
Now you know.
I'm sorry. [SOBBING]
I'm so sorry.
[CONTINUES CRYING]
That's it?
Yup. [CLEARS THROAT]
I did what I came to do.
I'll take it all the way if they let me
serve whatever time they throw at me.
Well, at least no cops died.
That's the miracle, right?
That was the plan.
How did you know they would convict?
I didn't.
So all of this
was to make the cops see?
No.
Just to make the world see.
That's why you're here.
[CLIPS]
[CHUCKLES SOFTLY]
I'll see you on the other side.
You know for the first time in my life, I feel like
I'm the one questioning everything.
You know, if it's okay,
I'd like to walk out with you.
Not as an enemy.
[HELICOPTER HOVERING]
[SIREN WAILING]
You might want to put that down?
[HELICOPTER HOVERING]
This is Officer Mike Randall.
I'm walking out with Lincoln Jefferson. He's unarmed.
I repeat, he's unarmed!
-[GUN FIRES] -[GLASS BREAKING]
Linc! Linc, no!
No! No!
Linc, no! Get up! No!
Lincoln!
And we have breaking news tonight.
Authorities have confirmed
that ex-marine Lincoln Jefferson
was killed just minutes ago
when he attempted to exit the downtown police department
while holding several hostages.
...unconfirmed reports on social media
that Lincoln Jefferson may have had contact
with Islamic extremists.
Information that many say further suggests
a suicide mission.
He was clearly suffering
from some sort of mental illness.
It's just so sad.
We do have to switch gears now
and toss it over to Steve, with sports.
Basketball season is finally upon us,
and, hey, we have plenty of early season tournament action
about the kickoff here in November.
But before we get to any of that,
we gotta talk about my man
Mon'Quarion Washington.
M&M, the six foot nine, 225 pound senior, is a monster on the court.
♪ I know I've been changed
♪ You know the angels In heaven
♪ Done signed my name
♪ Tell me What are we supposed to do?
♪ We've been marching Instead of shooting Since Martin Luther
♪ On our necks been A noose that never loosens
♪ Our freedom seems elusive
♪ We're due for a revolution
♪ Can't find a single solution
♪ Within this Crooked constitution
♪ It hasn't been that long
♪ Since you acknowledged me As a human
♪ Three fifths can't compromise
♪ To moralize Our contribution
♪ You call us Thugs and gangsters
♪ To justify When you shoot us
♪ Everything you say I am
♪ You about to Turn me into a gangster
♪ Well, if you Don't believe
♪ That I've Been redeemed
♪ You know the angels In heaven
♪ Done signed my name
♪ Well, follow me down
♪ To that old Jordan stream
♪ You know the angels In heaven
♪ Done signed my name
♪ I know I've been changed
♪ You know that
♪ I know I've been changed
♪ Good Lord
♪ I know I've been changed
♪ You know the angels In heaven
♪ Done signed my name
♪ You see, Riots ain't change the rules
♪ And looting's Not changing laws
♪ Marches ain't helping shit
♪ 'Cause they fight us With firearms
♪ So maybe we should Go get a license
♪ To fire ours
♪ And to turn Gangsters into mobs
♪ A ghetto National Guard
♪ We pressin' all oppressors
♪ That stress It's just their job
♪ To detect us by complexion
♪ And strip us From who we are
♪ If I pull the gun on you
♪ And you aim one Back at my dome
♪ We shot at the same time
♪ Whose side Will God be on?
♪ I know I've been changed
♪ You know that
♪ I know I've been changed
♪ Good Lord, yeah
♪ I know I've been changed
♪ You know the angels In heaven
♪ Done signed my name
♪ Amen