LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Carolyn Durham's two great loves are God and her family.
Every Sunday after church, more than fifty children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren fill the walls of her PRP home. The giggle of children, a TV echoing in the background and a good meal are all things her family has come to count on.
On birthdays, it only got better.
"We'd be right here in this house celebrating," she said, with a somber crack in her voice.
Monday would have been her grandson, Omari Cryer's, 26th birthday.
"My grandson was the life of the family," she said. His photos still cover the fridge in her kitchen, along with an order of service from his funeral.
On May 20, 2022, Louisville Metro Police (LMPD) and U.S. Marshals executed an arrest warrant for Cryer on domestic violence charges. Body camera video showed Cryer running; at one point he pulled out a gun, hopped a fence and fell. At that point, a U.S. Marshal shot and killed Cryer.
The U.S. Marshal's office asked LMPD to investigate and the department's Public Integrity Unit's findings were not made public.
Months later, the Department of Justice found LMPD has a pattern of invalid warrants, discrimination against black people and inadequate response to domestic violence.
Since this report, Cryer's family again asked for transparency and change. They said they don't condone domestic violence, but said he deserved justice, not death.
"They took a very huge piece of our family away," Cryer's cousin Nisha Jamison said. "We have little to no answers. Several attempts to reach people who can bring about policy changes, accountability, and transparency, and that has yet to happen."
Jamison said their calls to the Inspector General's office went unanswered, which she found concerning in the wake of the DOJ's investigation.
WHAS11 reached out to the Inspector General and did not hear back.
On Monday, Cryer's family marked his would-be birthday at his favorite place, Riverview Park. Cryer used to bring the whole family out to the park to play Kickball. In the same spot, they released balloons and said a prayer.
Jamison said her cousin claimed he was the best kickball player in the family. She also joked that Cryer was responsible for bringing the ball every time. Apparently, he kicked a few foul balls, but it didn't keep him from playing the game.
They laughed at that and said they laughed a lot when he was around.
"It's cruel," his grandmother said, pulled from the memory of his life by the reality of his death. "It's not fair."
► Contact reporter Tom Lally at TLally@whas11.com or on Facebook or Twitter.
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