Police Brutality / Individual record
Akiel Denkins
The Washington Post's Fatal Force database records Akiel Denkins in a fatal on-duty police shooting on 2016-02-29 in Raleigh, NC. Individual circumstances and legal outcome require case-specific review.
- Record ID
- PB-377
- Incident date
- February 29, 2016
- Outcome
- Fatal
- Location
- Raleigh, NC
- Agency
- Raleigh Police Department
- Category
- Fatal on-duty police shooting
- Age (reported)
- 24
What happened
Akiel Rakim Lakeith Denkins, 24, was killed by Raleigh police Officer D.C. Twiddy during an attempted arrest on February 29, 2016. Twiddy recognized Denkins from an outstanding arrest order, pursued him on foot through a residential area and confronted him near a backyard fence. Twiddy reported that they struggled and that Denkins drew a firearm, causing the officer to fire. Witnesses and Denkins's relatives challenged parts of the officer's account and demanded an independent review. The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation interviewed more than 40 witnesses, and Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman released a detailed investigation and declined criminal charges against Twiddy. The prosecutor's report documents her assessment; disputed witness accounts and the family's objections remain part of the case history.
Investigation & findings
Individual legal and investigative outcome not yet reviewed.
Washington Post Fatal Force v2; 2015–2024
Source record details
- Source incident ID
- 1327
- Race code in source
- B
- Race source method
- not_available
- Gender (source)
- male
- Armed status (source)
- gun
- Flee status (source)
- foot
- Agency IDs (source)
- 1141
Sources & records
- Primary source
- Additional source
- Methodology and national police killings trackingMapping Police Violence · Dataset/methodology
- Fatal Force v2 — fatal on-duty police shootings, 2015–2024The Washington Post · Dataset