Teen Fatally Shot With Hands Up by PA State Police

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Pennsylvania teen had his hands up when fatally shot by State Police. New videos show
Authorities obscured the last 4 seconds of Christian Hall’s life in publicly released videos.

 

STROUDSBURG, Pa. — A Chinese American teenager who was fatally shot by Pennsylvania State Police last year had his hands in the air when troopers opened fire, new videos reveal, prompting calls for an independent investigation.

The videos, recorded by the State Police, show the final moments of Christian Hall’s life on the afternoon of Dec. 30, 2020.

Hall, 19, who had been diagnosed with depression, was standing on the ledge of a highway overpass near Stroudsburg, in northeastern Pennsylvania, when troopers arrived. They tried to persuade him to get down, but when they saw he had a gun — later determined to be a realistic pellet gun — they backed away.

Video previously released by the Monroe County district attorney shows Hall raising his hands in the air, with the gun in one hand, after a trooper fired bullets that struck the bridge.

But the final seconds before he was killed were blurred by authorities.

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