Timeline of the Philando Castile shooting and its aftermath

May 27, 2017 at 11:25PM
Demonstrators, including Emmanuel Kandolo, foreground held signs as they took part in the vigil along a busy Larpenteur Ave. ] JEFF WHEELER ï jeff.wheeler@startribune.com A vigil for Philando Castile took place Monday evening, August 29, 2016 outside the Minnesota State Fair. Two groups, Merriam Park Neighbors for Peace and St. Paul Eastside Neighbors for Peace, gathered at the site on Larpenteur Ave. near Snelling Ave. where Castile was fatally shot by a St. Anthony police officer in July.
Demonstrators, including Emmanuel Kandolo, above, held signs along busy Larpenteur Avenue on Aug. 29 calling for justice for Philando Castile, who was shot dead by police near that spot. Marchers made their way to the gates of the State Fair. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

July 6, 2016: Philando Castile is shot dead by St. Anthony police officer Jeronimo Yanez during a traffic stop in Falcon Heights with his girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, in the passenger seat and her 4-year-old daughter in the back seat. Reynolds live-streams the immediate aftermath on Facebook.

July 7: Thousands of protesters take to the streets, marching to Gov. Mark Dayton's residence in St. Paul to demand justice. Dayton calls for a federal investigation into the shooting, saying, "We'll get him justice." Yanez is identified as the shooter, along with officer Joseph Kauser, who was present during the shooting but did not fire. President Barack Obama commented on the shooting, calling it and others like it "symptomatic of a broader set of racial disparities that exist in our criminal justice system."

July 8: Civil rights activist the Rev. Jesse Jackson visits St. Paul, while Ramsey County Attorney John Choi called for a "prompt and thorough" investigation into the shooting, but he has yet to decide whether he will use a grand jury to determine whether charges should be brought against the officers.

July 9: Marchers again take to the streets, shutting down part of Interstate 94 west of downtown St. Paul for hours in a tense standoff between protesters and police. Twenty-one officers were injured; 100 were arrested. Protests would continue in the ensuing months.

July 10: Yanez's attorney, Thomas Kelly, said Yanez stopped Castile because he matched the description of a suspect in a robbery a few days earlier. (Castile was found to not be connected to the robbery.)

July 11: Radio traffic is released in which Yanez says he stopped Castile because "the two occupants just look like people that were involved in a robbery," he said casually, according to police audio obtained by the Star Tribune. "The driver looks more like one of our suspects, just because of the wide-set nose. I couldn't get a good look at the passenger."

July 14: Castile is laid to rest following a funeral at the St. Paul Cathedral, with thousands in attendance.

July 26: Police clear a protest encampment outside the governor's residence, resulting in 46 arrests.

Sept. 28: BCA investigators turn over their findings from a three-month investigation to Ramsey County Attorney John Choi, who has not yet chosen whether to bring the case before a grand jury to decide whether Yanez should face criminal charges or to make that call himself.

Nov. 16: Choi announces that he has charged Jeronimo Yanez with three felony counts — second-degree manslaughter and two counts of dangerous discharge of a firearm. He's the first Minnesota officer charged in an on-duty killing in modern memory. Yanez will plead not guilty.

Dec. 14: In the first of a series of motions to dismiss the charges, Yanez's attorneys assert that Castile had marijuana in his system and did not respond to commands. The motion is denied. Castile's marijuana use will eventually be allowed as evidence. Multiple efforts to move Yanez's trial out of the metro area are denied.

May 30, 2017: After months of hearings, Yanez's trial is scheduled to begin in St. Paul.


Protestors and St. Paul police officers face off at Oxford and Summit Ave. following arrests of protestors outside Gov. Mark Dayton's mansion Tuesday, July 26, 2016, in St. Paul, MN.](DAVID JOLES/STARTRIBUNE)djoles@startribune Protesters were ordered Tuesday to clear the street and sidewalk in front of the governor's residence, where they have been since the fatal police shooting of Philando Castile nearly three weeks ago in neighboring Falcon Heights.**
Protesters and St. Paul police faced off outside Gov. Mark Dayton’s residence on July 26. An encampment filled the street for weeks. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Ramsey County attorney John Choi announced that officer Jeronimo Yanez will face three charges for killing Philando Castile on July 6. "No reasonable officer would have used deadly force under these circumstances, " Choi said during a press conference Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016, at the Ramsey County attorney general's office in St. Paul, MN. Standing next to Choi was Don Lewis, special prosecutor in the case.] (DAVID JOLES/STARTRIBUNE)djoles@startribune.com Ramsey County attorney John Choi announc
On July 6, Ramsey County Attorney John Choi announced that officer Jeronimo Yanez will face three charges in Castile’s fatal shooting. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Friends and family of Philando Castile made their way back to Brooks Funeral Home after the funeral, Thursday, July 14, 2016 in St. Paul, MN ] (ELIZABETH FLORES/STAR TRIBUNE) ELIZABETH FLORES • eflores@startribune.com
Friends and family of Philando Castile headed back to Brooks Funeral Home after the July 14 services at the St. Paul Cathedral. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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