AURORA — The public comment portion of Monday night's Aurora City Council meeting focused on community concerns related to a recent police shooting of a 37-year-old Black man, but only after technical difficulties were resolved within the virtual platform currently used by council.
Rajon Belt-Stubblefield was killed after an attempted traffic stop on Aug. 30. In the following days, Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain asserted that the officer involved tried to de-escalate the situation before using deadly force.
"This was a tragic incident. A life was lost. An officer was forced to make a split-second decision that no one wanted. But the suspect's actions created this danger, and our officers responded to survive and to protect others," Chamberlain said during the press conference. "This was not something that the officer, the department, or the City of Aurora wanted. Our officer was performing his duty, enforcing traffic laws and keeping our roads safe. He did not choose this confrontation. It was the suspect's actions that escalated and turned this into violence."
Denver7 reached out to Belt-Stubblefield's family, who are not ready to speak publicly at this time. The family said they have not viewed the body-camera video as of Monday evening. Aurora Police say the footage will only be released after the family watches it first.
According to Chamberlain, Belt-Stubblefield threw a gun onto the ground when he exited the vehicle.
Aurora
Aurora City Council suspends in-person meetings pending Kilyn Lewis lawsuit
In June, Aurora City Council voted to suspend their in-person meetings and public comment sessions until a wrongful death lawsuit filed on behalf of Kilyn Lewis' family is resolved.
"We are virtual because my colleagues felt that it was too disruptive to have public comment from individuals who were attending to speak on behalf of Kilyn Lewis, who was shot while unarmed by an Aurora Police Officer last May," Aurora City Councilmember Alison Coombs said. "They were persistent in their commentary with the goal of pursuing justice for Kilyn Lewis, and at times disruptive, and council felt that the best course of action, in their opinion, which I did not agree with, was to suspend all public meetings indefinitely."
During Monday's meeting, technical difficulties delayed public comment by roughly 30 minutes.
One of the people working to solve the issue said, "The calls keep dropping. We're trying to find a different way to make this happen."
Meanwhile Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman said, "We really need to test these systems beforehand."
The issues were fixed, and council was able to hear a handful of speakers whose faces could not be seen.
"I speak tonight, not just as a grieving mother, but as a part of a growing circle of families who have been forced to bury our sons at the hands of law enforcement," said one of the speakers. "These tragedies are not separate stories. They are chapters in the same book written by the same system."
The City of Aurora sent Denver7 a statement that said in part, "Any loss of life in our community is a tragedy. The city of Aurora, which includes the Aurora Police Department is dedicated to a thorough investigation."
The Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT), led by the 18th Judicial District, is the external agency conducting that investigation.
Council meetings will remain virtual "at this time," according to a spokesperson with the City of Aurora. However, that can be changed during a public vote at a council meeting.
