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BLM protester, 23, sues LAPD and his cop UNCLE, who he claims ordered officers to shoot him with a rubber bullet

  A protester who was hit with a rubber bullet during   Black Lives Matter   protests last spring is suing his cop uncle as well as the   Lo...

 A protester who was hit with a rubber bullet during Black Lives Matter protests last spring is suing his cop uncle as well as the Los Angeles Police Department.

 Asim Jamal Shakir Jr., 23, filed his lawsuit on Monday, alleging that his uncle directed other LAPD officers to fire a hard-foam projectile - a rubber bullet - towards him.

Shakir also alleges that his civil rights were violated due to the use of unreasonable force and training protocols not being followed.


The lawsuit examines the night Shakir joined a protest on May 29 from his downtown apartment in Los Angeles after George Floyd was killed.

Jamal Shakir filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department alleging that officer Eric Anderson, who is his uncle , directed another officer to shoot projectiles at him

Jamal Shakir filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department alleging that officer Eric Anderson, who is his uncle , directed another officer to shoot projectiles at him

Shakir, who owns a small business called Goin' Postal Candy, approached all of the black police officers he saw lined up, imploring them to join the protests.

Suddenly, he saw his uncle, Eric Anderson, identifying him by the last name on his helmet, serving along with his fellow cops, and shouted him out by name.

Footage from Shakir's Instagram Live (now available on YouTube) shows Shakir trying to talk to his uncle as other police approach the protester.

'Our ancestors are turning over in their grave right now, Eric!' Shakir yelled at his uncle.

'Look at me in my eyes, Eric,' Shakir continued. 'You know how your daddy feeling right now? That could have been you!'

Video shows Shakir approaching his uncle, Eric Anderson (right), on the night of the protest

Video shows Shakir approaching his uncle, Eric Anderson (right), on the night of the protest

Shakir motions at Anderson and claims 'ancestors are turning over in their grave right now'

Shakir motions at Anderson and claims 'ancestors are turning over in their grave right now'

A shot is heard and Shakir can later be seen with blood on his hand from allegedly being hit by a rubber bullet, with the shot allegedly directed by his uncle

A shot is heard and Shakir can later be seen with blood on his hand from allegedly being hit by a rubber bullet, with the shot allegedly directed by his uncle


At that point, a shot can be heard on the video and the person recording the video - ostensibly Shakir - can be seen fleeing with blood on his right hand, where he was allegedly hit by a rubber bullet.

It is not alleged that Anderson is the one who fired the rubble bullet, but that he directed somebody else to do so. Anderson can be seen motioning in the footage before the shot is fired. 

'My own uncle … told him to shoot me!' Shakir could be heard saying as he flees. 

WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE 

Shakir alleges in his lawsuit that he was hit by another rubber bullet in his buttocks when he bent over to pick up the phone.

He claims that he needed medical treatment at a hospital following the incident, as well as later psychological and psychiatric treatment.

The officer who fired the rubber bullet at Shakir has not yet been identified. 

The lawsuit appears to be breaking open some simmering family tension.

'There isn't a paycheck in the world that should be worth your morals and values and family,' Shakir said to the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday.

Carl Douglas, Shakir's lawyer, also commented on the case, saying uncle and nephew are now estranged.

'Cops have always talked to other cops: 'We're not white, we're not Black, we're blue.' I always thought that was balderdash,' Douglas said.

Shakir claims that he has needed medical treatment at a hospital following the incident, as well as later psychological and psychiatric treatment

Shakir claims that he has needed medical treatment at a hospital following the incident, as well as later psychological and psychiatric treatment

'This case alarmed me and touched me like no other in my 42 years, because never have I ever heard of an officer knowing the subject of his abuse — let alone them drawing from the same bloodline,' Douglas continued. 

Shakir told the LA Times that he seldom saw his uncle, mostly seeing him at holiday family gatherings.

Still, Shakir's cousin claims that the uncle is still family.

'At the end of the day, even though we don't spend time together — not that much time, we do have family functions every now and then — he knows that’s his family,' said Kelviana James, 34. 

Shakir's parents were both jailed when he was young, leading him to move to Atlanta, where he became a football star in high school.

He studied kinesiology and digital creative media and film at LaGrange College after earning a scholarship.

Shakir (pictured with attorney Carl Douglas) is suing his uncle, as well as the LAPD

Shakir (pictured with attorney Carl Douglas) is suing his uncle, as well as the LAPD

In January 2019, he shot a television pilot for Land of No Pity in Los Angeles, for which he hired his uncle to serve as a police presence, as required by his filming permit - the last time Shakir and Anderson saw each other before their May encounter. 

'This whole entire situation has been a tragedy and nothing short of a nightmare,' Shakir said during a Tuesday press conference, according to The Guardian.

'This is not just for me – it's for the people that don’t have the opportunity to speak out, that don’t have the opportunity to voice their pain and their hurt,' Shakir added.

Pictured: Shakir in his football uniform, where he played at LaGrange College

Pictured: Shakir in his football uniform, where he played at LaGrange College

Pictured: Jamal Shakir (right) during his graduation day from school

Pictured: Jamal Shakir (right) during his graduation day from school

Melina Abdullah, a BLM LA co-founder, joined Shakir for Tuesday's press conference.

'This young Black male activist called for his own blood, his own uncle, to think about the immorality of what he was doing, and the result was his uncle ordering the shooting of his nephew with rubber bullets,' Abdullah said. 

In October, Shakir filed a claim for damages, which typically serves as a precursor for a civil lawsuit, according to Los Angeles Magazine

'I asked Eric if he was serious and he just stared at me for a second and then told me to go home,' Shakir said of the incident at the time.

'With no facial expression, no nothing, he told me to go home.' 

Shakir was flanked by BLM LA co-founder Melina Abdullah (right) during a press conference

Shakir was flanked by BLM LA co-founder Melina Abdullah (right) during a press conference

The new lawsuit claims that the damages claim was rejected by the city on November 14. 

Shakir is seeking unspecified damages and pay for medical costs from his lawsuit. 

Multiple lawsuits have been filed against the LAPD due to the way it handled last spring's protests, with several lawsuits alleging serious harm committed by the police force.

Since then, the LAPD has faced restrictions on their use of projectiles, which a federal judge extended earlier this week.

Only certain officers can currently use projectiles and individuals cannot be targeted unless there is an immediate threat to officers or other individuals.

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