Family members of the Madison police officer who shot dead unarmed 19-year-old Tony Robinson have made their first comments on the fatal incident, stating their wish that “this tragedy could have been avoided”.
White officer Matt Kenny, a 12-year veteran of the force, shot the biracial teenager on the evening of 6 March. A Guardian investigation established Robinson had taken magic mushrooms in the hours before the shooting and at least one 911 call was made by a friend expressing concern over his erratic behaviour and informing police the 19-year-old was in need of assistance.
Police say Robinson assaulted Kenny after he had forced his way into the teenager’s apartment after hearing a “disturbance”. The Guardian spoke to a number of sources with knowledge of the case who stated that Robinson had been alone in the apartment at the time Kenny forced entry.
Kenny’s sister, Amanda Kenny, provided a statement to local news outlets, describing her brother as “an exemplary officer who operates with the highest level of integrity, judgment and restraint”.
The fatal incident has prompted numerous protests in the small city of Madison, the capital of Wisconsin, and refocused discussion around racial disparities in the city.
Kenny’s family state they are supportive of “the impulse to protest” and thank Robinson’s family for their “consistent calls for peaceful demonstrations”.
“Madison as a community can do better for all its citizens. We must discuss, perhaps with more urgency, how our community handles racial inequality and then do something about it,” Amanda Kenny writes. “And while we acknowledge that Madison has problems, we also feel that my brother is not one of them.”
Officer Kenny fatally shot a 48-year-old man in 2007 but was subsequently exonerated.
The Kenny family’s comments follow those of Madison’s police chief, Mike Koval, earlier in the week, who has apologised to the Robinson family and offered support for protesters’ rights, but described Officer Kenny as a “caring, conscientious individual”.
