Black Lives Matter Sacramento

Public Statement

Black Lives Matter Sacramento releases the following statement in response to the November 27th, 2020 shooting at Arden Fair Mall.

November 30, 2020

We offer our sincere condolences to the family members of Dewayne James Jr. and Sa'Quan Reed-James. It is unconscionable that a family should have to bury their youthful loved ones this holiday season. The shooting deaths of the 19 and 17 year old were entirely preventable. We are calling on Arden Fair Mall to take ownership of its neglected duty to protect its patrons.

- We demand that Senior Property Manager Tod Strain make the camera footage of the incident available to the family for viewing at the family’s discretion.

- We further demand that Strain and Arden Fair Mall develop safety and security protocols that will prevent deaths like Dewayne’s and Sa’Quan’s from occurring again.

      1.Any updated security protocols should not defer to existing departments of Sacramento Law Enforcement, and should not include using law enforcement to over-police communities             of color.

      2. Furthermore, these protocols should not tolerate racial bias, and should ensure accountability when racial bias occurs.

Arden Fair Mall has a history of maintaining silence whenever violence breaks out on its property. This incident is no different. Not only was a statement not made from the mall’s management, they carried on with business the next morning as if a tragedy did not happen the night before.

Black Lives Matter Sacramento is calling for any community members who have suffered at the hands of Arden Fair Mall’s negligence in protecting its patrons to pursue civil litigation.

If you are interested in suing for violence you encountered, please contact us at an address below.

Community next steps:

We ask the community to call and email Property Manager Todd Strain at (916) 514-4100 ([email protected]) and put pressure on him to meet these demands.

We also ask the community to call the Director of Security Kelvin Kumar at (916) 514-4101 ([email protected]) and put pressure on him to meet these demands.

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