Family of teen killed by police after reported robbery speaks

AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) — Aurora Police said Jor’Dell Richardson was one of several people involved in a robbery at a smoke shop Thursday afternoon.

His parents spoke exclusively with FOX31, acknowledging their son was in the wrong place at the wrong time. There are also questions: Why didn’t police use non-lethal force on Jor’Dell?

“You’re going to shoot him in the back?” Jameco Richardson, Jor’Dell’s father, said. “You’re OK with that? You can sleep with that?”

“The police came to tell me that my son was involved in robbing a store, that he had a gun, he took off running and he was shot,” Laurie Littlejohn, Jor’Dell’s mother, said.

Her son would have started high school next school year. Littlejohn did not shy away from his choices.

“I can’t put blame on no one else because my son was 14 years old and he had a mind of his own to make the decision to go or not to go,” Littlejohn said.

Littlejohn said her son never made trouble before and got involved with the wrong crowd.

“He probably had chose and made a bad decision that day, but my son wasn’t no monster,” Littlejohn said.

Family: Officers said teen killed by police ‘didn’t suffer’

Two others were taken into custody Thursday in connection with the reported robbery.

The driver of a dark-colored Kia minivan with more suspects inside fled the scene, and Jor’Dell was shot and killed.

His family remains upset about how his death was reported to them by police.

“One of the police officers told me that he wanted me to know that my son didn’t suffer,” Littlejohn said.

“For you to tell somebody’s mama, that they didn’t suffer. You are not that person, you’re not that soul,” Richardson said. “Could you tell your baby mama that? Do you really feel that? You put suffer in suffering!”

Police said Jor’Dell was carrying a gun and wouldn’t let go of it when ordered to do so. Many questions linger about the circumstances surrounding that shooting.

FOX31 has requested body camera video of the incident.

Aurora Police is still searching for the dark-colored Kia minivan that got away with several teens inside. They’re asking anyone with information to report it immediately.

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