Case closed: DA ignores governor’s call for special prosecutor in Andrew Brown death

Gov. Roy Cooper wanted a special prosecutor to take over the investigation into the fatal shooting of Andrew Brown by sheriff’s deputies in Elizabeth City.

But the district attorney for Pasquotank County, Andrew Womble, made that impossible Tuesday when he closed the state investigation into Brown’s death with no charges against the deputies who killed him.

“I’m elected by the people of the First District to do exactly this job,” Womble told reporters in a news conference Tuesday. “A special prosecutor, or outside counsel, is not accountable to the people of this judicial district.

“I am.”

Brown, 43, died on April 21 when he tried to drive away from deputies serving arrest and search warrants for drug charges against Brown.

Despite a judge’s ruling that only the Brown family and their attorneys could view body-camera footage, Womble showed the videos to reporters during the news conference Tuesday.

Following the news conference, Cooper called on federal officials to continue investigating Brown’s death. The FBI confirmed on April 27 that the agency is overseeing a civil rights investigation into the fatal shooting.

“Public confidence would have been better served with a special prosecutor and by quickly making public the incident footage,” Cooper told The News & Observer on Tuesday afternoon in a written statement. “Our state should pass specific laws to increase transparency, conference and accountability in the justice system.”

The Democratic governor didn’t mention Womble, a Republican, by name in his call for a special prosecutor. His call echoes the recommendation of a task force the governor created last summer to ensure there was racial equity in North Carolina’s criminal justice system.

Governor’s task force

Cooper created the North Carolina Task Force on Racial Equity in Criminal Justice after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Floyd died on May 25, 2020, while under arrest. Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds while holding him to the ground.

Floyd’s death caused a public outcry for racial justice and police accountability throughout the United States.

Raleigh wasn’t spared from protests, some of which turned into long, late-night riots.

That led state leaders to look for answers.

In December, the task force released 166 pages of recommendations to the governor to bring racial equity to the criminal justice system.

One of the recommendations included creating legislation that would require a special prosecutor to take over any investigations of officers for using force across the state.

North Carolina lawmakers are in session and just ended their bill-filing period without drafting legislation to make that happen. However budget-related bills are still being filed and the recommendation includes increasing funding for special prosecutors to be used, which means the bill could still be introduced.

No request from Womble

Brown’s killing happened one day after a jury found Chauvin guilty on all counts in Floyd’s death.

Protesters have marched in the streets of Elizabeth City since Brown’s death.

North Carolina laws allow only the district attorney of the judicial district where a use-of-force incident happened to call for a special prosecutor.

The special prosecutor could come from a neighboring district, be appointed by the NC Conference of District Attorneys or come from the state attorney general’s staff.

Laura Brewer, spokeswoman for Attorney General Josh Stein, said Stein made the option of using his staff available to Womble, but the district attorney did not take him up on the offer.

Stein co-led Cooper’s task force for racial equity and helped create the recommendation for a special prosecutor to take over these cases.

Brewer said that without Womble making the request, Stein couldn’t send another prosecutor in.

“There is no way for us to override a DA,” Brewer said.

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