Oklahoma NAACP President Addresses Deadly Bartlesville Shooting

The family of a woman shot and killed by Bartlesville police say they demand justice. 

1/18/2018 Related Story: Bartlesville Woman, 72, Dies After Police Say She Wounded Two Officers

Geraldine Townsend's granddaughter raised questions about the shooting during a news conference with the Oklahoma NAACP.

Townsend's family said this is a tragedy.

They said she didn't have to die and want answers about why she did.

"This has been a tragedy. A very hard tragedy because we've not only lost our grandmother, but we also feel like, as of right now, we feel like we're losing my father," said Geraldine Townsend’s Granddaughter, Mikeia Allen.

Allen is speaking for her father, Michael Livingston.

He's now in jail on drug and threat charges. 

Police served a search warrant on his home last month. 

"What my father Michael Livingston is not is a threat to this society, and with a nonviolent criminal past he is still being targeted today as if he is violent," said Allen. 

During the search warrant, Allen's grandmother, Geraldine Townsend, was shot and killed by Bartlesville Police after she fired a pellet gun at officers, injuring two of them. 

Allen said she was suffering from dementia and Alzheimer's. 

"She's a very highly Christian woman, she goes to church and bingo only. She does not go anywhere else and I'm quite sure if she knew who they were she would have stopped and put it down," said Allen. 

During a news conference Thursday, Oklahoma NAACP president Anthony Douglas mentioned that Michael Livingston had recently divorced a Bartlesville police officer's daughter. 

"Was this contributed because Mr. Livingston was an African American married to his daughter that is Caucasian. Was that police officer contributing to this raid," asked Douglas. 

The family is left with more questions than answers. 

"Was that police officer a part of the raid? Was he a part of the investigation? What all contributed to this? Why did Mr. Livingston become the target," asked Douglas. 

"In order to break the chain of racial profiling and lawful just and protecting and serving our country, it starts with the local law enforcement," Allen said. 

News On 6 reached out to Bartlesville police who said they don't have a comment at this time.
    
The OSBI is investigating the shooting and News On 6 learned that they turned over the findings of their investigation to the Washington County DA.

News On 6 called the DA’s office but did not hear back.