Kevin Peterson Jr: 21-year-old Black man shot by police in Washington

Friends say a 21-year-old Black man who was fatally shot by sheriff’s deputies in Washington state was a former high school football player who had an infant daughter and a fun-loving personality

Deputies Shooting (The Oregonian)

A Black man who was fatally shot by authorities in Washington state was a 21-year-old former football player with a baby daughter, friends and family said Friday.

Law enforcement remained tight-lipped about the Thursday night shooting in Hazel Dell by Clark County sheriff's deputies, but Kevin E. Peterson Sr. told The Oregonian/OregonLive the person killed was his son, Kevin E. Peterson Jr.

Several dozen protesters gathered into the early morning hours Friday as investigators processed the scene of the shooting. Bystanders said Peterson's car was towed but his body remained at the scene for hours.

Mac Smiff, an organizer of Black Lives Matter protests in Portland, Oregon, said he knows Peterson's sister and spent more than five hours at the scene.

“They didn’t have a whole lot of information,” he said of family members.

“There was a ton of grief, a ton of grief. He’s 21 and has a baby, an infant They’re not sure what happened, why the encounter took place. Everyone was extremely disheveled and confused.”

The elder Peterson told the newspaper that he arrived at the scene about 6 p.m. Thursday but “did not get a chance to identify my son” until 5:30 a.m. Friday.

Jake Thompson, a high school acquaintance of Peterson, said he took photos at the wedding of Peterson's parents'in Portland in 2018. On Friday, he posted a black-and-white photo of Peterson in a tuxedo with a big grin.

“I didn't sleep much last night," he said Friday.

Peterson played football at Union High School in Vancouver Washington, loved sports of any kind and was a big personality who was known and liked by everyone at school, Thompson said.

Other agencies, including Washington State Patrol and the Camas Police Department, responded to help investigate. The Camas Police Department has been designated as the lead investigative agency.

Hazel Dell is about 12 miles north of Portland. A vigil was planned Friday evening in Vancouver, Washington, by the NAACP chapter.