The County Board has ordered the release of available footage from a fatal Columbia Pike police shooting earlier this year.
The Board announced this morning (Friday) that it has directed County Manager Mark Schwartz to release video of the incident that resulted in the death of 33-year-old Shawn Valn by Friday, Oct. 16. No footage accompanied the announcement and it is unclear what, specifically, will be released.
The decision came just one day after Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti announced that she is asking for a special grand jury to investigate the shooting that took place inside a 7-Eleven.
The Board described the decision as “reinforcing its commitment to transparency, accountability, and public trust, and in full respect of the ongoing criminal investigation and any subsequent administrative investigations that may arise.”
Officers from the Arlington County Police Department were dispatched to Columbia Pike on May 8 for a report of a man threatening a woman. Valn barricaded himself in a back room of the 7-Eleven at 3602 Columbia Pike after an initial encounter with police, ACPD has said.
Around 9 p.m., after a nearly three-hour standoff, officers breached the door and Valn displayed a knife, according to police. Two officers fired, striking him. He was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
Valn, who was homeless, was a well-known figure along Columbia Pike, and residents held a vigil for him days after his death. In July, a local resident presented a petition to the County Board calling for “a full, public accounting” of the shooting.
The County Board discussed laws around the release of body-worn camera footage during closed session earlier this week.
“The County Manager and public safety staff are actively working with a third-party specialist to prepare a video package that clearly depicts the key events and timeline of the incident,” the Board said in a press release.
If footage is not available, Schwartz and Police Chief Andy Penn are expected to provide a public update at the Board meeting on Oct. 17. Schwartz will also provide an update on ACPD’s “Directive on Release of Information,” which covers the release of footage from body-worn cameras, and will publish a draft of the document for public feedback.
The Northern Virginia Critical Incident Response Team, a regional task force that uses police personnel from outside the locality, took over the investigation after the shooting. Its findings are forwarded to the commonwealth’s attorney for independent review, police have said.
