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NEW YORK — The death of an unarmed teenager in a hail of 20 police bullets should serve as a new cause for his generation, the Rev. Al Sharpton said Tuesday at the teen's funeral.
"You have to fight the battle of police misconduct," Sharpton urged as he eulogized Khiel Coppin, 18, at the Nazarene Congregational United Church of Christ in Brooklyn.
Coppin's mother, Denise Owens, sobbed softly as she was comforted by his stepfather in the front pew.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly has said the teen was mentally ill, pointed a hairbrush at officers "as if he were aiming a gun" and repeatedly ignored orders to "stop, show his hands and get on the ground" before he was shot.
Before picking up the hairbrush, Coppin waved knives at officers — who had been summoned by his mother on Nov. 12 — and taunted them by saying, "Come get me. I have a gun. Let's do this," Kelly has said.
Coppin's killing has revived debate in the city over the police's use of force, perceptions of threats and police training. Some critics have said Coppin's shooting and other recent police shootings of unarmed black men show racial stereotypes factor into officers' perceptions of threats.
"I don't know who shot him, but I know what killed him," Sharpton told mourners. "What killed him was a climate of indifference that is pervasive in this city, where we have almost become immune to police brutality."
Rev. Conrad Tillard, who presided over the service, said his community respected police officers, which was why Coppin's mother called them for help.
"We acknowledge the brave and courageous police officers that put their lives on the line every day for the citizens of this city. But as a community, we stand firm and are unequivocal in saying that we must tear down this blue wall of silence," said Tillard.
