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Philando Castile’s Cousin Faced 10 Years in Prison for Protesting Castile’s Killing by Police

HeadlineAug 02, 2017

Back in the United States, in Minnesota, the cousin of Philando Castile, who was killed by a police officer during a traffic stop last year, is fighting trumped-up charges after he protested his cousin’s death. Thirty-eight-year-old Louis Hunter is facing two felony riot charges stemming from his participation in a demonstration on Interstate 94 in the days after officer Jeronimo Yanez fatally shot Philando Castile in his car, as his girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, live-streamed her boyfriend’s death and her 4-year-old daughter, Dae’Anne, was sitting in the backseat. Officer Yanez has been acquitted. But Louis Hunter is now facing up to 10 years in prison. This is Hunter, speaking to supporters on Friday outside the offices of Ramsey County Attorney John Choi.

Louis Hunter: “Because of the trumped-up charges they’ve given me, I done lost my home, I done lost my business, I done lost my vehicle, from all this. That is not right. That is not right. My kids is overwhelmed in all this, my family, all of us. It’s been even hard to mourn my own cousin over all this.”

Update: Louis Hunter’s felony riot charges were dropped after today’s broadcast.

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