Overview of The case of a Black teen, killed after joining a protest movement
This episode of NPR’s Code Switch introduces We Keep Us Safe, a new Embedded investigation into the killing of 16-year-old Antonio Mays Jr. inside Seattle’s CHOP protest zone in summer 2020. The story examines how a movement created in response to police brutality and aimed at protecting Black lives became the setting for the killing of a Black teenager—and why, years later, the case remains unsolved.
What the episode is about
- The episode centers on Antonio Mays Jr., a Black teen from Southern California who traveled to Seattle during the 2020 racial justice protests.
- Antonio was killed inside CHOP — the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest — a protest encampment that took over several blocks after Seattle police retreated from a precinct.
- Reporters Sidney Brownstone of The Seattle Times and Will James of KUOW investigate the death through:
- witness interviews
- public and previously unexamined video
- court filings and police records
- a year-plus of reporting with nearly 100 interviews
Key points and findings
Competing narratives about Antonio’s death
- At the time, many protesters at CHOP said a white Jeep was driving erratically and firing at the protest zone.
- In that version of events, the people at CHOP fired back in self-defense.
- But Antonio’s father, Antonio Mays Sr., says that story is false:
- Antonio came to Seattle to join the protest movement
- he was not attacking CHOP
- he was killed “in cold blood,” not in self-defense
The father’s perspective
- Antonio’s father describes his son as:
- a thoughtful kid who loved fantasy novels
- a young man helping with the family barbecue business
- someone raised on Black history and the realities of racism in America
- He says he had shared protest videos with Antonio during the George Floyd uprisings, and later learned his son had traveled to Seattle without telling him.
- He filed a missing persons report when Antonio disappeared and later a lawsuit after learning of his death.
Police and city response
- Antonio’s father says Seattle police initially told him they were working on the case, then largely stopped communicating.
- He still says he lacks basic answers:
- who shot his son
- why
- what the police actually did afterward
- Seattle police have said the case remains open and active, but have not provided public updates.
What the live streams show
The episode’s most important evidence comes from three live-streamed videos recorded the night of the shooting:
- A streamer says a white Jeep is driving through the park and that shots are being fired.
- Another video captures the Jeep crashing into barricades, followed by more gunfire.
- In the aftermath, a woman filming nearby records a man walking around the scene and hears:
- “pick up my shells”
- a comment that appears to suggest possible destruction or concealment of evidence
The reporters believe these videos narrow the timeline significantly, but still leave major gaps:
- Who exactly fired the shots?
- Who said “pistol whip” in the aftermath?
- What role did armed “security” at CHOP play?
- Why has no one been held accountable?
Why this case matters
A story about silence and responsibility
- The episode argues that the case has remained unsolved not just because of missing evidence, but because of a circle of silence:
- witnesses
- protesters
- police
- city officials
- That silence makes the case feel emblematic of a larger failure: when people in power and people seeking change prioritize self-protection over responsibility.
The larger contradiction
- CHOP was built around a promise to protect Black life and resist police violence.
- Yet Antonio, a Black teenager who may have come to join that same movement, ended up dead inside it.
- The reporters frame this as a devastating contradiction at the heart of the protest zone.
What to expect next
- This episode is the setup for the rest of We Keep Us Safe.
- The next installment will dig into:
- how CHOP formed
- why some protesters armed themselves
- how a protest against police violence became a place where vigilante-style policing emerged
Access and availability
- The episode encourages listeners to search for Embedded wherever they get podcasts to hear the full series.
- NPR also points listeners to npr.org/chop for evidence and related materials from the investigation.