Just as he was turning his life around. Update to this previous story.
Via WBTV:
On social media, Daquan Antonio Westbrook went by the name “Donkey Cartel.”
His persona was that of an up-and-coming rapper who posted his beats and lyrics on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
His musical repertoire included songs with titles such as “No Hook,” “Pac” and “Got it out the mudd.”
Friends say Westbrook, 18, longed for recognition and stardom. But now he’s dead after Charlotte-Mecklenburg police say he pointed a gun at an off-duty officer, who shot him.
Police say Officer Thomas Ferguson fired the shots that killed Westbrook at Northlake Mall on Thursday after an argument between two groups of people escalated with gunshots.
CMPD Chief Kerr Putney told reporters late Thursday that at least two people involved in the dispute pulled guns and opened fire on the mall’s lower level, near Dick’s Sporting Goods.
As hundreds of Christmas Eve shoppers ran for cover, police working at the mall responded. Putney said witnesses told police that when Ferguson reached the scene, one of the gunmen turned and pointed his weapon at the officer.
Ferguson, a 19-year police force veteran, fired his service weapon, and Westbrook was pronounced dead on the scene, police said.[…]
Friends upset by the media’s portrayal of Westbrook, who arrest records show had a lengthy criminal history involving drugs and guns, jumped to his defense. Others condemned a widely shared photo of Westbrook’s slain body on the mall floor.
Briana Wright was one of them.
She and Westbrook grew up around each other. Westbrook, who had another nickname, “Dada,” was known as a “goofy little brother” who tried to make others laugh.
“He was a good guy,” Wright said. “We were all just put in situations … we had no control over. He didn’t deserve to lose his life and have his picture broadcast through all avenues of social media.”
Sadek said his friend “was becoming a better man.”
When Sadek first met Westbrook, the aspiring rapper was 16, in and out of trouble with police, and sporting two ankle bracelets, Sadek said.
But over time, Westbrook’s rocky past gave way to his “strong heart” and raw talent, he said.
“He got a job, got off both ankle bracelets and was turning his life around,” Sadek said. “People don’t understand that level of hip-hop. (Music) was his way of venting his life and frustrations.”
HT: Smokey