Family of Grand Prairie PD Ikea shooting victim want body cam footage released

The family of an armed man shot and killed by Grand Prairie police in an Ikea parking lot are demanding transparency from the department.

Police were called out in April to the Ikea parking lot on a report of a man slumped in his car seat. Carlos High, Sr. was armed and originally police said he shot at officers. But cops later changed their story and said he didn’t fire the gun. Now his family wants to see the body camera footage.

The attorney and supporters for High, Sr.  on Tuesday shared photos of High, describing him as a family man who battled mental illness. They also revealed graphic photos of High after he was struck by a barrage of police gunfire on April 23.

"I just don't understand why they had to take it to that extent because he was not a bad person,” said Tina High, widow.

Angela Luckey, president of the NAACP Grand Prairie branch, claimed High, Sr. was having some type of a psychotic breakdown.

Now his widow, her attorney and president of the city's NAACP chapter are criticizing Grand Prairie police. They accuse the department of not being transparent by refusing to release body cam video. 

Grand Prairie Police Chief Steve Dye released a statement, that said in part, “We know that some people suffering from mental illness can still be capable of injuring or killing others. While it is very unfortunate that we had a loss of life in this incident, my officers did what they were forced to do not what they wanted.”

Dye also said elected officials and other community leaders hadn’t expressed any concerns about the incident.