The loved ones of the shot men, murdered by the police at the Argyle Forest hotel, demand the release of the video

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The loved ones of a man murdered by Jacksonville police last week at an Argyle Forest hotel and the family’s lawyer spoke out Tuesday calling for a transparent investigation and the release of the entire video of the incident that exists.

Attorney Marwan Porter and his loved ones said at a news conference that Michael Hughes, 32, was the father of two young children and a good person who had a mental illness.

According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, Hughes was shot dead on March 30 by Officer JH Wing at the Quality Inn of the Youngerman Circle after Hughes took control of the officer’s Taser and left him stunned.

The sheriff’s office said both Wing and another officer who responded to the hotel were carrying a video with a body camera. Porter also said his understanding is that in addition to the body cameras, there were cameras on the hotel’s control and surveillance panel, so that’s why he and the family are calling for the release of all the images.

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On March 30, a domestic dispute broke out between Hughes and his girlfriend at the hotel, and according to JSO Chief of Investigation TK Waters, officers were called to the hotel several times, the first time at 6:30 a.m. and the last shortly. after 12:30 p.m.

This time, according to Waters, Hughes had returned to the room after leaving earlier, and when two officers arrived, Hughes refused to leave. Waters said officers tried to take Hughes into custody and there was a more than 60-second fight with one of the officers, during which Hughes shouted that he would kill him. Hughes’ girlfriend Dawn Johnson argued at Tuesday’s press conference that Hughes shouted, “I’ll kill you, I’ll kill you.”

According to Waters, Hughes gained control of Wing’s Taser and stunned him once and then the officer fired several shots. Hughes rushed back at the officer and the officer fired several more shots, Waters said.

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When Hughes collapsed, Waters said, the officer handcuffed him and did CPR until rescue personnel arrived and determined he was dead.

“Right now, I don’t know how to deal with anything. He was not supposed to go that route. He was never supposed to go that route. I miss him so much, ”said Hughes’ girlfriend. “We had our problems, we argued, things were frustrating, but I loved that man and he loved me.”

Hughes’ father, Timothy Hughes, said his eldest son was shot in the head, chest, stomach and buttocks.

“Why did the police take pictures of the motels and security pictures of the motels? I want to see them. I want to see what they did to my son, ”he said. “I would also like to know why the police have two Tasers, two pepper sprays and two batons, but they could not arrest a black man without violence or a weapon. I would like to know why they could not arrest a black man who “I had all these things under his arsenal. These are things I would like to know and I would like my son’s images to be alive, until the moment he was alive until the moment he left him on the ground.”

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Johnson demanded to know “why did they have to shoot him so many times?”

“I feel guilty because I asked the police for help,” he said.

Porter insisted that Hughes was not a violent man, but “argued with his girlfriend and is now dead.” Porter said a nonviolent internal dispute “should not be a death sentence.”

The family’s lawyer said that if all the evidence is released and it appears the police acted legally, the family will accept it, but if they find the officers acted inappropriately, they will prosecute the courts.

Wing, who has been with JSO for two years, suffered minor injuries in the incident. He was placed on administrative leave during the investigation, which is a normal procedure. The second officer did not fire his weapon.

JSO sent News4Jax the following statement regarding Tuesday’s press conference:

“As he is aware, Chief Waters shared the information available shortly after the incident. This remains an active investigation, both within JSO and externally through the State Attorney’s Office. No new information is available. for publication at this time, therefore, we would respectfully deny an interview. “

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Porter said he has already requested access to all surveillance videos and has not yet received news from the agency.

This was the third shooting involved by police in Jacksonville in 2021 and the second to end in death.