Englewood mother outraged after officer who fatally shot her son becomes detective: "They didn't protect Bernard"
ENGLEWOOD, N.J. -- Four months after the New Jersey attorney general's office released disturbing police body camera footage of an Englewood man killed by police, his death is still under investigation.
Now, his mother tells CBS2 instead of reprimanding the officer who killed her son, police are promoting her.
"I miss him so much. I said, 'Everything I'm doing right now is for you,'" Myrlene Laurince told CBS2's Christine Sloan.
Laurince is demanding justice for her son, Bernard Placide, who authorities say was Tased by Englewood police and then shot and killed by Officer Luana Sharpe.
Body cameras worn by three officers captured the tragic incident, which is now under investigation by the state attorney general's office.
Laurince told Sloan it was a mistake to call police for help after he son superficially wounded her hands during a mental health crisis.
"While I'll regret it for the rest of my life, I did call them, because they didn't help me, they didn't protect Bernard, they didn't save Bernard," she said.
What angers her more is that Englewood officials confirm Sharpe is being transferred to the detective bureau.
"The police officer should be fired, should be in jail by now. From the first day, they should put her in jail," she said.
In a statement, Englewood Police said Officer Sharpe has been cleared to return to full duty while waiting for the case to be presented to a grand jury and that all officers are entitled to due process.
"She is tri-lingual and it is the intentional of our police department to make use of all her skills in order to best serve our city," the statement continued. "The assignment of the officer as a detective is not a promotion."
"That's a pay increase, that's an unmarked car, that's a desk job, that's a way of getting promoted to a higher position," said family attorney Eric V. Kleiner.
Laurince's attorney claims Placide was holding a knife handle -- not a knife -- and he never had a chance.
"He was convulsing, gestating on the floor, completely defenseless," Kleiner said.
Placide's mother says police should have been trained to deal with her son.
"He didn't know what he was doing, I can see that in his eyes," she said. "They don't treat us the same as if it was a white guy. They would treat him better, but because we are Black, they treat us like we're nothing."
The family, activists and others plan to hold a protest at Tuesday night's City Council meeting. Laurince said she will go to the podium and demand justice for her son.
The attorney general's office says the findings will be presented to a grand jury to consider whether charges should be filed. It says any personnel matter questions need to be addressed with the police department.
