The mother of a 19-year-old woman who shot herself while handcuffed during a traffic stop is questioning the official story from the police. Sarah Wilson was in the car with her boyfriend when they were pulled over by police in South Norfolk, Virginia.
Wilson was placed in handcuffs during the stop while police attempted to detain her boyfriend, identified as 27-year-old Holden Medlin. Officers left her by the vehicle while they struggled to get Medlin into custody. At some point, Wilson managed to get hold of a gun and fatally shot herself. Officials said that it was not an officer's gun.
Police ruled her death a suicide, but Sarah's mother Dawn doesn't believe the officers' version of events.
“Even if it was true, which I don’t believe, there’s still a huge level of negligence on their part,” Dawn told WAVY.
She wants to see video from the traffic stop, but the police said that none exists. One of the officers was wearing a body camera but it became disabled during the struggle with Medlin and there is no dash camera footage.
Officials said that the officers had probable cause to stop Medlin's vehicle and had been surveilling him for most of the day. He was charged with possession of oxycodone, suboxone and paraphernalia, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm with schedule I or II drugs, and fleeing from police.
For now, Dawn just wants answers and for the officers involved to be held accountable for her daughter's death.
"Why is there no accountability for the situation? These procedures are in place so people are safe, the people on the street, the police, and the people in custody."