Family, Activists Lobby For Use-Of-Force Reform On Anniversary Of Stephon Clark Shooting

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — It's been one year since two Sacramento police officers shot and killed Stephon Clark. Monday, Civil Rights leaders and celebrities were in the capital city for a series of events dubbed "Legacy Weekend."

Reverend Al Sharpton spoke at Stephon Clark's funeral last year and was back in town alongside Clark's family, pushing for changes in police protocol, specifically requiring all law enforcement officers involved in deadly shootings to go before a grand jury.

Clark's fiancée Salena Manni renewed her call for action and pushed for the passage of AB 392, on the one year anniversary of his death.

Entertainer Nick Cannon also joined the cause Monday, speaking to crowds at the capitol.

"This fight is never over," Cannon said. "We will get justice for Stephon Clark one way or another."

READ ALSO: Monday Marks One Year Since Stephon Clark Shooting

From the steps of the Capitol, the 22-year-old's family echoed that call.

"I want justice and I don't want my grandson's name, Stephon Clark, to be in vain," said his grandmother Sequita Thompson.

Reverend Al Sharpton led a remembrance ceremony to cap Legacy Weekend, which was full of events dedicated to marking the shooting anniversary.

"I'm not going to sit and let you shoot this brother down and without no grand jury and no evidence.... act like as though he was the cause of your policeman doing something that was unjustified and malicious. That is not going to happen as long as we are able to stand and breathe and speak for justice," Sharpton said.

Cannon and Reverend Shane Harris attended a private brunch with Clark's children and Manni, where they pushed for policy change on police use of force, arguing officers have too much discretion when it comes to how and when police should be able to fire their weapons.

READ: City Council Reviews 84 Stephon Clark Protest Arrests, Hears From Police Chief

"We want to make it clear today even though the DA announced she would not prosecute and the AG would not prosecute," Harris said. "They said in their press conferences they went by the book. We're here to say, we're here to change the book."

Cannon said he wanted to be a father figure to the community.

"I want to be a father to the fatherless. And stand firm for my own children but at the same time for the ones who need a father figure. That's what we've got to do as men, specifically black men in our communities," Cannon said.

In response to AB 392, police unions are backing a competing bill, Senate Bill 230, which would require more use-of-force training for officers.