Stacey Barchenger, and Dave Boucher

The Tennessean

District Attorney General Glenn Funk brought an army Thursday to announce he would not prosecute a white police officer who fatally shot a black man in February at an East Nashville public housing complex.

For 70 minutes, he and others made the case that Officer Joshua Lippert acted in self-defense, firing three shots after 31-year-old Jocques S. Clemmons raised a gun toward him. Funk’s deputy prosecutor attacked Metro police policies she said promote a perception of bias on the police force, and Funk suggested how to fix it.

Mayor Megan Barry, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director Mark Gwyn and some local black pastors pledged their faith in Funk’s decision, while many cited a need for systemic justice reform.

But across the city, there was division.

Police Chief Steve Anderson was not with Funk and Barry as his department was chastised, and later rebuted allegations of bias.

Clemmons’ family members, with whom Funk had met earlier in the day, were disappointed and renewed their call for Lippert’s firing.

"They do not accept the version of facts presented by the district attorney,” family attorney Michael Hoskins said. "This family will continue to fight.”

Earlier Thursday, Nashville police released an internal affairs report saying Lippert should be exonerated in the case. Those recommendations will go to the police chief, who will decide if Lippert should be disciplined.

Funk’s announcement does not necessarily close the Clemmons case or the debate on how best to police Nashville.

Federal investigators continue to examine the case.

"Our office, working in partnership with the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division and the Federal Bureau of Investigation will review all available evidence, including information collected during the state and local investigations, and determine whether further federal action is appropriate," Acting U.S. Attorney Jack Smith said in a statement.

The police and the prosecutor

Funk and members of his office questioned the police department’s investigation of the shooting.

Nashville police justified their officer’s actions within hours of the incident and showed bias in reports that describe Clemmons as a “suspect,” said Deputy District Attorney Amy Hunter.

“The MNPD and TBI continued to investigate this incident for several weeks following this particular report that suggested a conclusion and claimed to be complete,” Hunter said during the news conference.

“Because of this, it will be difficult for many to perceive the Metro Nashville Police Department’s investigation as fair.”

Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said it was “absolutely not” true that the department investigation was complete at the time the report was written. He said the word “completed” in the report, and cited by the prosecutor, meant the shooting had been carried out, as opposed to attempted.

READ MORE:

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► Nashville police: Officer justified in shooting death of Jocques Clemmons

► Jocques Clemmons family, community leaders call for officer's firing

► 'No winners today,' says Nashville pastor after officer not charged in shooting death

Hunter also noted that at least 29 Nashville police reports refer to Clemmons as a suspect and Lippert as a victim.

Despite these accusations, Funk said any bias perceived in police policy did not affect his office's conclusion.

"I can assure Nashville that no bias impacted our decision in any way," Funk said.

Funk said he spoke with Anderson on Thursday morning and invited him to attend.

Anderson later told reporters that, because he has yet to decide whether Lippert should face discipline within the department, he did not feel it was right to attend. Lippert, 32, remains on desk duty while the review is pending.

Through his attorney, Lippert declined to comment

At his own news conference in the mayor’s office, Anderson rejected the assertion his department's policies are biased. He also said he was "taken aback" at some of the criticism, but said it will not affect the working relationship between police and prosecutors.

"Any person, any elected officials, any government officials, they're always going to have differences of opinion. And I understand that," Anderson said.

The pastors call for peace

Funk brought Pastor Breonus Mitchell from Mount Gilead Missionary Baptist Church — one of at least three black pastors in the audience — to the podium.

Mitchell thanked Funk and called for peace, saying civil unrest and damaging property is not going to help the community heal.

Pastor John Faison of Watson Grove Baptist Church in Nashville said he was disappointed there would be no charges. He agreed with Funk that there may be problems with police policy.

"The issue at hand is not one incident. The issue at hand is culture … the culture of MNPD must change," Faison said.

Black Lives Matter echoed the pastor, sending out a fiery statement late Thursday.

“Today Nashville, the liberal stronghold of Tennessee, joins the other numerous localities that fail to find fault or even recognize criminality in police officers when their violence and brutality takes the lives of black people,” read part of the statement.

The confrontation in Cayce Homes

At the time of the shooting, Lippert was part of a police department flex team - units of Metro police officers whose patrol areas shift based on crime trends.

Lippert was assigned to East Nashville’s James A. Cayce Homes public housing development near Shelby Avenue.

About 2,000 people live in the brick, barrack-style apartments.

Police said in February there had been an increase in shootings there.

About 1 p.m. on Feb. 10, a Friday, Lippert saw an SUV that failed to stop at a stop sign at South Sixth Avenue.

Lippert followed the vehicle to a parking lot.

Police said the driver, later identified as Clemmons, ran away from his SUV, and Lippert gave chase, leading to a struggle between the pair. Authorities said Clemmons was carrying a fully loaded .357 magnum revolver that at some point fell from Clemmons’ body.

Clemmons picked up the firearm and didn’t drop the gun when Lippert told him to, authorities said. Lippert believed he was in danger and opened fire, police said.

A police internal affairs investigation released Thursday says a woman who was trying to leave the parking lot at the time told investigators she saw Clemmons with a gun in his hand.

Funk said the woman’s account, which was corroborated by surveillance video, was key in his decision making.

“The most important evidence was witness number one, who was present in the parking lot who saw Mr. Clemmons when he picked the weapon off of the ground,” Funk said.

“Officer Lippert in our opinion did the right thing at that point.”

Lippert fired three rounds, hitting Clemmons twice in the lower back and once in his left hip, police said.

Clemmons later died in surgery. He had two children, ages 13 and 8. His family raised more than $11,000 through a GoFundMe account to bury Clemmons at a funeral Feb. 18.

An organization called the Justice for Jocques Coalition formed in the days after the shooting. Since then, it has joined with others to demand:

Lippert's firing;

More accountability for police officers, including a citizen review board and police body cameras;

Metro officials stop threatening to evict public housing residents who organize protests at their properties.

The coalition blasted Funk’s decision.

“Today Metro District Attorney Glenn Funk made a decision that impacted the family of Jocques Clemmons and will serve as the example for how the cases of Metro Nashville Police officers who kill citizens in the line of duty will be handled in the future,” a statement released Thursday afternoon reads.

The path forward

Clemmons’ death became a flashpoint for Nashville, prompting protests, federal and TBI reviews, calls for reform and a new method for investigating the use of deadly force by police. Spurred by tensions between police, prosecutors and the TBI, city and state officials eventually agreed to allow the TBI to investigate all future cases of deadly force and police.

READ MORE:

Nashville DA goes to judge to release Jocques Clemmons death report

DA Glenn Funk has questions for TBI in deadly Nashville police shooting of Jocques Clemmons

TBI finishes review of Jocques Clemmons shooting in Nashville

It comes as cities across the nation face more scrutiny, from the public and advocacy groups like Black Lives Matter, of how they respond when white police officers kill black residents.

Funk’s announcement comes after months of heightened attention on biased policing and tension over how deadly officer-involved shootings are investigated in Music City.

A common thread from officials on Thursday was a need for reform within the criminal justice system.

"There will be an administrative review of Lippert’s actions to determine if the situation was handled appropriately and whether any disciplinary action is warranted, or if there needs to be changes to policies, training, (and) procedures as a result of this incident," Barry said.

The mayor recently proposed setting aside $23 million to equip police officers with body cameras and install dash cameras in their vehicles — a demand long pushed by social justice advocates, but a price-tag that is half the figure requested by Anderson.

Barry offered condolences to the families of Clemmons and Lippert. However, she said there are "systemic issues" in the criminal justice system and pledged action moving forward.

Funk announced two initiatives in his own office he hopes will make the justice system more equitable:

For non-violent misdemeanor offenses, his prosecutors will ask judges to release individuals without that person paying bond or ask for reduced bond amounts

Establishing a conviction review unit, a sort of in-house appeals unit

“For Nashville to move forward, all law enforcement, including my office, must take steps to enhance fairness and confidence in the criminal justice system,” he said.

And so Funk made four proposals to address with Barry and Nashville police that generally focus on addressing allegations of police bias and use of force.

The bigger picture

Funk and his five assistant or deputy prosecutors took turns speaking, explaining the legal reasons for the decision or offering a play-by-play of surveillance video of the deadly encounter between Clemmons and Lippert.

But Funk stressed the incident was about more than legal analysis.

It was about two people, he said.

“It’s important that we all recognize these are people,” he said. “And that we recognize their humanity. Jocques Clemmons was a father of two boys, young boys. He was by all accounts a good father.

“Officer Lippert was a father, raising a child with special needs. While he has not lost his life, this has impacted him in a very significant way and we want to recognize that.”

Funk’s four proposals

Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk on Thursday called for Mayor Megan Barry and Metro Nashville Police to do the following:

Conduct a joint study to review a report titled “Driving While Black,” which alleged racial disparities in police traffic stops and searches

Discuss whether Nashville police should formally review when officers draw their weapons

Enact policies to encourage recruitment of minority employees

Fund restorative justice programs, which focus on aiding victims while also keeping some offenders from incarceration

READ MORE:

Nashville police, TBI, DA spar over police shooting investigations

Vice mayor pushes more inclusion after Jocques Clemmons protest at Metro Nashville council

Nashville police to search Jocques Clemmons' social media

At Jocques Clemmons funeral, personal loss in public spotlight

New video details early interactions before officer-involved shooting

What we know: Investigation into Jocques Clemmons death

Reporter Joey Garrison contributed to this report.

Reach Stacey Barchenger at 615-726-8968 or sbarchenger@tennessean.com or on Twitter @sbarchenger. Reach Dave Boucher at 615-259-8892 or dboucher@tennessean.com or on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1.