Family of man killed by police calls for release of videos, reports

WINDHAM — Holding a framed picture of their slain son, Keith and Barbara Sands called on the state Tuesday to release police bodycam and dashcam video footage of the shooting that resulted in the death of their secondborn child, Kyron Marcel Sands, last February.

Listing a slew of unanswered questions — What was the name of the officers who shot Kyron? Was he unarmed when he died? What are police protocols for responding to a mental health crisis? — Keith Sands said the family was seeking answers after being left in the dark for the five months following their son’s death.

“No one has contacted and told us anything,” Sands said. “He’s never coming back. That’s something that we all have to live with.”

Summarizing the goals of Tuesday night’s news conference, Leah Ralls, the president of the Windham/ Willimantic branch of the NAACP, said supporters were calling on officials to release their report on the shooting, as well as any dashcam footage, and to sit down with the Sands family and update them on the case, which Ralls said would be “an acknowledgement of their pain.”

According to news articles published at the time of the shooting, police first made contact with Kyron Sands that day, Feb. 20, in Norwich, where he had allegedly been attempting to break into an apartment building. Sands and officers exchanged gunfire before Sands stole a car and drove onto Interstate 395.

Law enforcement chased Sands through several cities and towns, during which Sands reportedly fired a gun at civilians and police officers. Officers deployed stop sticks in Windham, forcing Sands out of his vehicle. At least one bullet struck Sands in the stomach, according to initial reports. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Standing outside Windham Town Hall on Tuesday night, Barbara Sands said the autopsy report her family recently saw showed Kyron had been shot in the back, not in the stomach, as police claimed. She said Kyron, whom she called, “my baby, my best friend,” had been experiencing a psychotic break at the time of his death, and deserved help, not lethal force.

“When he was on his medications, he made better choices,” Barbara Sands said. “When he’s off, he has problems, and he starts to hear things.”

The 39yearold’s mother said Kyron had had runins with the Norwich Police before, and they should have known to send a Mobile Crisis Team after getting the initial call about an alleged breakin. “It would have been a totally different outlook,” Barbara said. “Whoever was in charge, I want them to be held accountable, and I don’t want another family to have to go through this.”

Kyron’s cousin, Tonìa Marable, said Connecticut must do a better job of caring for its residents who suffer from schizophrenia. “Those people deserve to be treated with civility, and proper care,” Marable said. “I’m so sorry this had to happen to my cousin, but if we can help one person, one family, so that they don’t have to suffer like my uncle and my aunt had to, we would have did some work today.”