AMIR LOCKE,KILLED BY OFFICERIN MINN., WANTEDA CAREERINMUSIC

kickingthe couch where Locke’s familysaidhe was sleeping.Onthevideo,heis seenwrappedin a comforter, beginning to move with a pistol inhishand justbefore an officer fires his weapon.

AmirLocke was bornin the St.Paul suburb of Maplewood.He grew upin thesuburbs,where heplayedbasketballinmiddleschoolandtried outforhishighschoolfootball team.

BY SARA BURNETT

Before he was fatallyshot by a Minneapolispoliceofficer AmirLocke hadbeen makingplans.

The 22-year-old Black manhad filedpaperwork to starta musicbusiness, his mothersaid,andhad already designedalogo Nextweek,he planned to move to Dallas, where he wouldbe closer to hismomand he hoped— buildacareerasahip-hopartist,followinginthemusical footstepsofhisfather

Hisdeathinside a Minneapolisapartmentwhere policewereservingasearchwarrantearly Wednesdayhas renewed callsforpoliceaccountability and justicefor Blackpeoplewhoare too often victims.Italsoleft Locke’s tight-knitfamily, friendsand a community grievingforthelifehedidn’t get to live “Amir wasa brightlight, andhedeserves to beable to shine,”hisfather Andre Locke,saidduring a news conferenceFriday

Manyquestions remain abouttheeventsleadingupto

Locke’s death.But a police bodycamvideoshowsofficers entering the apartment withoutknockingandanofficer

Locke’s familysaidhehad nocriminal record andhe had a licenseand concealed carry permitforthe gun, which theysaidhehadfor protectionbecauseheworked as a driverfor a fooddelivery service.Hisfamilyincludes severalpeoplewithbackgroundsinlaw enforcement andthemilitary, andhisparents and a cousinsaidthey spoke often withAmirand other young Blackmen inthe family about how to handle interactionswithpolice: keep yourhands visible,don’t make anysuddenmovements.

Theybelieve thatAmir, whotheysay wasa deep sleeper wasstartledwhenthe officerkickedthecouchinside his cousin’s apartmentand didn’tknow who was inside whenhe grabbedforhis gun.

Thoseclosest to him repeatedlydescribedhimas“a goodkid.”

“You took a good kid who was trying to make thebest outof hisenvironment,and surpassitandsucceedandhe was doingit,”saidReginald McClure, a close cousinofAndre Locke who works in law enforcementin Texas.“He was figuringoutlife,buthe was doingitsafely.”

1.00% for15months 1.25% APY1 for2years

Buthistruepassion was music,andhehad a natural talentforit,hismothersaid. Locke enjoyedhip-hop,and speakingabout “the realities ofwhat’s goingoninthe neighborhoods,”Andre Locke said.Healso wanted to work with youngpeople,his mothersaid.

McClure also recalled AmirLocke ashaving“abig heart.”

Whenhis grandmother diedlast year Amirdidn’t want to see her bodyin the casketsohestayedoutsidein theparkinglotduringthefuneral, McClure said.After the funeralended,Andre Locke andthefuneral directorarranged to have Amir go inside through a backdoorsohe couldbe alonewithhis grandmother

“We have thesepictures withhim,andhe’s standing there andhe’s saying goodbye tohisgrandmother,”McClure said. “Andhere’s thecrazy part.Thesamefuneralhome thathe was soheartbroken to go see his grandmotherinbecause of the bigness of his heart,isthesame one he’s going to bein.”

Burnett writes for The Associated Press.

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