'Taking a long time': Two years after Asbury Park cop killed Hasani Best, still no action
ASBURY PARK - Two years after an Asbury Park police officer shot and killed Hasani Best, 39, in a bedroom doorway of his apartment, his family is still searching for justice and dealing with depression.
Kenisha White told the Asbury Park Press that two years later, she and their son Dayvon White, 22, still struggle with the loss.
"He is really unable to function without him. I didn't know it was going to be this hard," White said.
She trusts the lawyers but she "really feels like it is taking a long time."
The attorney general’s office is still investigating the shooting and will present the body-camera footage and other evidence to a grand jury when the probe is concluded. Grand juries were not hearing cases during the earlier parts of the COVID-19 pandemic, so the process has been delayed. The family wants a criminal indictment against Sgt. Sean DeShader, the Asbury Park cop who shot and killed Best.
"Justice would have to start off with a formal apology from Monmouth County, Asbury Park, Sean DeShader and anybody that was involved because nobody ever got in contact with my son to give their condolences or acknowledging the fact (Best) was killed," White said.
"I feel like that is where justice would have to start, and justice would have to move forward and (DeShader) being indicted for murder because he murdered (Best)," White said.
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What happened
At approximately 9 p.m. on Aug. 21, 2020, city police responded to a report of a loud domestic dispute inside a home in the 900 block of Fourth Avenue, according to a prepared statement from the Attorney General's Office.
According to the statement, a woman was outside the home when police arrived, and she said that the man with whom she had a domestic dispute had brandished a knife during the altercation and remained in the upstairs apartment of the two-family dwelling.
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City police and Monmouth County Sheriff's officers "tried to negotiate with Mr. Best through the door of the apartment in an effort to end the standoff," officials said. "During the incident, the man opened the door at various times, revealing that he was armed with a knife."
Police negotiated with Best for about an hour, with DeShader involved in an ongoing dialogue with him for about 45 minutes. Body-camera footage shows Best refused commands to drop a steak knife and that he threatened to stab an officer, although he never advanced toward the officers. Then two shots are fired by DeShader at Best.
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Initially, the Attorney General's office also did not release the race of DeShader, who is Black, and it was initially unclear that Best was Black. But the death came at a time when tensions over police violence, especially against Black people, was very high.
Three months prior, the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police and the recent shooting of Jacob Blake by Kenosha Police in Wisconsin launched worldwide protests and a revival of the Black Lives Matter movement.
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In September 2020, the Attorney General's office released the full body-camera footage.
Still waiting
Two years later, the case is still under investigation, and will ultimately be presented to a grand jury to determine if DeShader, who shot Best, will be charged with a crime or if no crime occurred.
In September 2021, the family filed a lawsuit in state Superior Court in Monmouth County, that according to a tort claim notice filed in 2020 on behalf of Best’s three children put the amount being sought at $25 million.
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"The case has been stayed because you have to wait for the attorney general to decide what they're doing. We met with the attorney general in December 2020," said Scott Rynecki, the attorney for the family.
The civil case has been put on hold because the criminal case takes priority, there have also been delays presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The family at this point is losing faith in the Attorney General's office and the Justice Department because the fact that it has taken this long to even present this case to a grand jury," Rynecki said. "Both myself and the family are very frustrated that the wheels of justice are turning so slowly."
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White called Best a "provider."
"He provided every month for my son, and right before he got killed my son received his high school diploma. We were going to call him that week but we didn't get a chance to because he was killed. So that was really taken from us," White said.
She said it is still "a hard pill to swallow."
"Even two years later, it does not even feel like two years to us," White said.
The family is not very confident of an indictment based off how the criminal case has been presented to them.
"Anyone who looks at this (body-camera footage), can say this warrants further investigation because this was a shooting that surprised everyone at the scene and everyone else. It was really a bad scene," Rynecki said.
Charles Daye is the metro reporter for Asbury Park and Neptune, with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion. @CharlesDayeAPP Contact him: CDaye@gannettnj.com
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Asbury Park NJ cop shot Hasani Best two years ago; still no action
