‘If Maurice Gordon was white he’d still be alive’: Video of black motorist being shot six times by police released by attorney general’s office

Video footage showing a state trooper killing a black man after firing his handgun six times during a traffic stop struggle has been released by the New Jersey attorney general’s office.

Maurice Gordon was killed by Sergeant Randall Wetzel on 23 May, and the office for the attorney general, Gurbir Grewal, has released 11 audio and video recordings that show the incident more clearly, using dash cam footage that recorded the traffic stop last month.

Mr Wetzel’s identity was released to the public for the first time on Monday, and the attorney general’s office confirmed that the shooting is still under investigation.

The release of the video and audio clips came amid protests across the US, in opposition to police brutality against African Americans following the death of George Floyd.

Mr Floyd died after being detained by Derek Chauvin, who at the time was a Minneapolis police officer, but has since been fired and charged with second degree murder and manslaughter.

Mr Gordon’s death happened two days before Mr Floyd’s, and in an interview with the Associated Press, the attorney for his family, William O Wagstaff III, said that he believed race was a factor in his death.

“If Maurice Gordon was a white male he’d still be alive,” Mr Wagstaff told the outlet.

Audio recordings of a 911 call made the day before by one of Mr Gordon’s friends was also released on Monday.

In the recording, his friend said that Mr Gordon left his house in the middle of the night, and looked “really panicked.”

In the videos, Mr Wetzel, who is white, pulled Mr Gordon over at around 6.30am and told him that he had been driving at 110mph.

Mr Gordon had been stopped 15 minutes earlier, after he was caught driving at 101mph, and a few hours before that was helped to get a tow truck by the police, according to the outlet.

When Mr Gordon was pulled over by Mr Wetzel he was told by the officer that where he stopped was not safe.

His car wouldn’t start, and he was filmed unsuccessfully attempting to turn the engine back on.

Mr Wetzel then said he could wait in the police car, while a tow truck was called for, but Mr Gordon walked towards the highway and the state trooper guided him into his vehicle, but did not put him in handcuffs.

The officer asked Mr Gordon where he was going, and he initially said to buy a new car, but after being told he couldn’t at that time of day, he was heard saying he was on his way to Atlantic City, according to the AP.

After around 20 minutes of questioning, Mr Wetzel offered him a face mask, but Mr Gordon left the car, and the officer, using an expletive, told him to get back inside.

Mr Gordon then closed the door at the back of the car, and walked over to the driver's side and attempted to get in, and Mr Wetzel shouted: “Get out of the car!”

The two then appeared to clash at the back of the vehicle, and six shots can be heard in the footage, after Mr Wetzel called for backup from other officers.

When the other officer arrived, Mr Wetzel said that he had handcuffed Mr Gordon and used pepper spray before the shooting, although the video does not clearly show either.

Mr Wetzel told the other officer: “He was in my car, went to give him a mask. He tried getting out of my car. We got in a fight on the side of the road. He tried running into my car.

“I got him out, sprayed him. We got in a fight again. He ran away from me, tried to hop in my trooper car, grab my gun. We were fighting with my gun and I shot him. He was already cuffed.”

Mr Grewal’s spokeswoman Sharon Lauchaire, told the AP that Mr Wetzel was not wearing a body camera during the incident, as his troop is in the process of getting them.

Additional reporting by Associated Press.