On July 6, 2016, the Black Lives Matter movement was enraged after the wrongful killing of another black man at its peak. Philando Castile has joined the growing statistics of people whose lives have been cut short in the most painful and macabre ways and most people would say it happened because of the color of his skin. Posthumously, the 32-year-old shot to fame primarily due to the immediate aftermath of the event that led to his death – his girlfriend had streamed the entire police brutality incident to millions of people in the world.
Read further for the basic information about Philando Castile, how his life ended and what the law said about it. You will also know what happened to the policeman who pulled the trigger.
Who was Philando Castile?
Before stepping into the limelight as a follower to his tragic death, Philando Castile was an ordinary guy who worked hard to make an honest living. He was born on July 16, 1983 and his name is Philando Divall Castile. His parents took him in to St. Louis, Missouri when he was born.
Castile was an alumnus of Saint Paul Central High, the school where he graduated in 2001. There is no record of a college education, but he started working as a nutrition services assistant at the school. Chelsea Heights Elementary and Arlington High School before joining the Saint Paul Public School District in 2002. He remained there until his death. In 2014, he became Supervisor of Nutrition Services at JJ Hill Montessori Magnet School.
Despite having no criminal record, PhilandoLa Castille had been on the wrong side of the law several times before the event that cost him his life. Fifty-two is the number of times he has been stopped by authorities for traffic violations, and in some cases he has been placed under arrest.
The filming of Philando
On that fateful day, July 6, 2016, officer Jeronimo Yanez and his patrol partner Joseph Kauser pulled over a black American (Philando Castile) as he was driving in Falcon Heights, Minnesota with his girlfriend Diamond Reynolds and her 4-year-old daughter. St. Anthony, Minn., police officers stopped them in a suburb of Saint Paul, Minn., for a routine check that included checking ID, license and registration. During the process, 32-year-old Castile let Yanez know he was in possession of a firearm which he was also licensed to carry. Afraid to use his gun, Yanez decided to act first by shooting Castille seven times, hitting him five times.
The ensuing conversation before the shooting shows that Castile was looking for something that Yanez said was a gun and warned him not to pull it out. As Castile explained that he wasn’t drawing his gun, the officer was too agitated to listen and started shooting him quickly.
Meanwhile, moments after the ugly turn of events, Reynolds summoned the courage to log into Facebook to send the stream to millions of viewers. Soon the story went viral and many condemned the act of police violence committed by the police against the black community. According to Reynolds, officers didn’t bother to save her boyfriend’s life by watching him gradually pass. About twenty minutes after the shooting, Castile was confirmed dead at the Hennepin County Medical Center. His death was ruled a homicide due to multiple gunshot wounds. His funeral took place on July 14 at Saint Paul’s Cathedral.
Amid the resounding rumor from the general public, Yanez was acquitted of all charges. He was declared a free man on June 16, 2017, and lost his job the same day.
His girlfriend, mother, daughter
Philando Castile is survived by many relatives including his mother Valerie Castile, girlfriend Diamond Reynolds and daughter, who both witnessed his death. Although absent from his life long before his death, Philando’s father, identified as Phelix H. Frazier Sr., wanted his share of the $3 million settlement the family received after the end of the murder case.
The deceased had no known offspring other than his girlfriend’s daughter to whom he had played fatherly roles.