Autopsy shows Stephon Clark was shot by police 7 times from behind

Autopsy results performed on Stephon Clark show he was shot seven times from behind.

(Image credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

published 30 March 2018

A private autopsy concluded Friday that Stephon Clark, the 22-year-old black man who was killed by police in Sacramento, was shot seven times from behind. The autopsy, commissioned by Clark's family and performed by Dr. Bennet Omalu, concluded that of the eight bullets that entered Clark's body, not one entered from the front; the eighth shot hit Clark from the side.

The results suggest that the officers shot Clark — who was unarmed, clutching only a cell phone — while he did not pose a threat to them. Omalu said that any of the eight shots could have had a "fatal capacity," and added that Clark's death was not instantaneous, saying that he may have been alive for three to 10 minutes after being hit. Clark did not receive immediate medical attention after being shot, and The New York Times reports that while Omalu said that it was unclear whether Clark could've survived the shooting even with rapid medical attention, "every minute you wait decreases probability of survival."

The California Justice Department will oversee the investigation into Clark's death, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said earlier this week. Read more about the autopsy results at The New York Times.