Brianna Greer's loved ones will gather
for her homegoing ceremony the same week
they released independent autopsy results.
It shows Brianna died from head trauma.
She fell from a police car when
she was handcuffed. Her loved ones
will say goodbye at the service,
but there are a lot of difficult days ahead.
Attorney activist and N double ACP
president Gerald Griggs is joining us.
Thanks for the time.
Thank you for having me.
You're going to be with Brianna's
family at her home going, going.
How, how are they doing?
It's been a really significant week.
It's definitely been very tough for
the family not having full answers
about what happened to Brianna and
also having to tell her three-year old
daughters that she's not coming home
and they keep asking every single night.
Where's my mother.
Where's my mother and the family
really has no answers except for
the limited information that the
GBI has given them that allegedly,
Brianna fell out of a police car
where the back door was not fully.
Is not fully closed,
so you know it's very difficult
time for them.
Her family is of course shocked and saddened,
but they resolved to keep fighting
to get justice and accountability and
answers or what happened to Brianna Greer.
The need for those answers is
why there's going to be a March
for justice after the service.
Talk more about that.
Yeah, so the family called on
the activist community called on
the entire community to come join
and demanding more resources.
And more care for mental health community.
Here in Georgia you know they passed
the mental health legislation,
but it's been unfunded,
so her family wants to have a March
to state capital to make her the
face of of mental health in Georgia.
And the fact this unfunded and the
fact that they need more resources and
so they're going to have that March,
and this would never have happened to
Brianna if a crisis intervener had a
had a come instead of law enforcement,
and that's what's needed.
You know, Georgia's 48th in providing.
Resources for mental health and
we have to address that.
So she's gonna take.
They're gonna take her directly
to the people that can make change
and that's the state capital.
You make such an important point because
Brianna was having a mental health
crisis and that being addressed as
a medical issue could have been the
difference between her being home with
her three-year old girls right now
absolutely. And what people need
to know is it's not the first time
that Brianna has had an episode.
You know, the four other times
that she had an episode the
ambulance was called they.
Responded they were able to stabilize her.
They were able to provide
her with medication,
but this time the Hancock County
Sheriff's deputy showed up and
ultimately Brianna ended up
succumbing from her injuries
in their custody in their care.
Six days later
this week, Brianna's family released those
independent results from the autopsy.
It could be several months before
the official autopsy is released.
When you look at that report
done by a pathologist that also
worked on George Floyd's case.
What do you see?
What stands out to you
that stands out to me is the level of
trauma that she sustained and I'm very
concerned how someone that small could
sustain such damaging trauma and it has
not been explained and I understand that.
You know, GBI has a lot of
cases to work on, you know?
And it takes a while to get the
full medical examiner report.
But we are expert from Michigan,
was able to make a determination she died
from severe blunt force trauma to the head.
We need to know why she had that
severe blunt force trauma to the head,
and that's a question GBI has to answer.
And this should be a top priority for them.
I know again they have a lot of cases,
but when you have a young lady,
a mother who dies in the custodian,
care of law enforcement,
that should go to the top of the list so
you could provide them answers immediately
about what happened to their loved one
and the family's been asking to see
all of the police body camera video
from the night that this all happened.
Is there any progress there?
No, even we've not heard from the GBI
after the first initial preliminary
report and that's concerning.
We do know that there is a
possibility of more dashboard Cam,
more body worn Cam.
You know more information about what
actually happening happened before and
after the camera that they released and
so we want all of that for this family
because the family deserves answers.
The GBI works for the people and it's
time for them to be transparent.
For the people in the process,
and so that's what they're asking for.
And we at the Georgia State
Conference are supporting their
resolve to get questions answered.
The Homegoing service is upon us
a finality for her loved ones.
For her three-year old daughters.
But it's just really the
beginning in so many ways.
What else do you feel needs to
happen to get Brianna's family?
Those answers they deserve?
I think more elected
officials need to step up.
I think the community is doing
a great job of organizing.
Around this, many local and
regional and national activists.
Many individuals who care about the
justice movement will be present
at the homegoing service and we
will continue to amplify her name.
But it's time for the elected officials.
It's time for the people of power
to understand that there is a
police brutality problem in Georgia
and it needs to be addressed.
And so I think the next step
is for our elected officials to
recognize that a black woman was
brutalized in this state.
And it calls for us to organize and respond
the same way we responded in Brunswick,
GA when a young jogger was gunned down.
Brianna's family and her kids,
now connected to others who've
lost loved ones in police custody.
Have they talked to or heard
from any of those other families
they have, and we expect that Brianna
Taylor's family will be present at
the homegoing service and I know
that the families in Georgia are
in the process of reaching out,
but this just underscores just
what we've been talking about.
Is 2020 and before there is an
issue with deaths at the hands of
police or in the custody of police
and we need to address it in this
state as well as in the nation.
So hopefully local elected officials
and national elected officials
will hear the name Brianna Greer
and organize with the community to
make changes so no other family
feels the pain that this family
feels and you have to understand,
you know,
Brianna's not coming home and somebody's
going to have to take care of those.
3 year old little girls and
it's incumbent upon us.
The community of conscious,
the community of care to take care
of them and make sure that they get
answers and justice for their mother.
We are thinking about her little
girls and everyone who loves
her attorney, Gerald Griggs.
Thanks so much for the time. Thank you.