La. State Police ordered to release records related to wrongful death shooting lawsuit

By Piper Hutchinson
Contributing Writer

(lailluminator.com) — A state judge has ordered Louisiana State Police to release records related to a 2021 shooting of a man that has spurred wrongful death and excessive force lawsuits.

LSP has until early November to respond to nine public records requests submitted by Malikah Asante-Chioke, who was seeking information related to the shooting of her father, Jabari Asante-Chioke. According to news reports, a passerby saw him in distress, walking along a highway, carrying what was later determined to be a gun and a knife.

Jabari Asante-Chioke, 52, was reportedly experiencing a mental health crisis and was shot 36 times.

The Louisiana ACLU, which is representing Malikah Asante-Chioke, said the killing amounted to a “firing squad” and was an unjustifiably excessive use of fatal force. The ACLU said many of the shots struck Jabari Asante-Chioke after he was disarmed and seriously wounded.

Malikah Asante-Chioke’s public records requests pertained to her father’s shooting, personnel files of the involved officers and training materials related to interacting with people experiencing mental health issues.

LSP denied each request, citing an exception under the law for records involving foreseeable criminal litigation. After multiple attempts to clarify whether this exception applied to each request, Malikah Asante-Chioke’s attorneys filed a petition in August asking courts to force the agency to fulfill the request.

“This is a victory for Malikah, and for the rights of all Louisianans,” said Nora Ahmed, legal director for the ACLU of Louisiana. “The law is clear: members of the public have the right to access public records, a right that is guaranteed by our state constitution and by our Public Records Law. That right must be respected.”

Louisiana State Police declined to comment on the matter, citing the ongoing court case.

This article originally published in the October 7, 2024 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.