Mother Of Teen Killed By Police: 'Nothing Is Going To Bring Him Back'
PASADENA (CBSLA.com) — The mother of an unarmed teen who was fatally shot by Pasadena police in March 2012 is speaking out.
Anya Slaughter, mother of Kendrec Lavelle McDade, and the boy's father, Kenneth McDade, settled with the city of Pasadena earlier this week.
In an exclusive, Slaughter sat down with CBS2/KCAL9's Serene Branson to talk about her son, a college student and Azusa High School football standout.
Police were responding to a 911 armed robbery call when they encountered McDade, then 19. A man called and said two teenagers took his laptop, and they were armed. The man, Oscar Carrillo, later admitted he only told police the thieves were armed so they would show up faster.
Authorities said after a brief pursuit, McDade reached inside his waistband and was fatally shot eight times, four times each by two officers. No weapon was recovered at the scene.
McDade's mother said she settled out of court because she couldn't stand the idea of sitting through a trial.
On Thursday, wanted to talk about how her son lived and how much she missed him.
She showed Branson many family photos, including one his mom now treasures.
"This is the last picture of him before he passed," says Slaughter, showing Branson a photo of a smiling youth she wears around her neck.
Kendrec was her first born.
"Nothing is going to bring him back" she sayd, "$850 thousand or $850 million. I'm always going have a void in my heart," Slaughter said.
"I grew up in Pasadena. I know they have money. They could have did better than this," Slaughter said, "but it was such a journey for me."
With a daughter and young son to care for, Slaughter said, she's trying to move on but acknowledges she hasn't forgiven the officers who took her son's life.
"Twenty years later, when the officers and everybody else are back to their normal lives, I'm still going to be suffering. In due time, I know that I will have to [forgive] but right now, I can't. I just can't."
