Prosecutor Says That MHS Grad Was Masturbating And Soliciting Sex; Family Of Slain Man Is Outraged

Essex County authorities now say that the Atlanta CEO and ex-Montclair resident killed Friday in Newark's Branch Brook Park was masturbating and propositioned an undercover Essex County sheriff's detective before a tussle sparked the fatal shooting.

They say that DeFarra "Dean" Gaymon, 48, who was visiting New Jersey for his 30-year Montclair High School reunion, "appeared to panic" when he found out the man was a detective. They were in an area of the park that has a reputation for being a gay sex pickup spot, authorities said.

Gaymon, who was unarmed, lunged at the officer and tried to disarm him while threatening to kill him during the struggle, said Essex County Acting Prosecutor Robert Laurino to the Star-Ledger. The 29-year-old officer, who has not been identified shot Gaymon once in the abdomen after he appeared to reach into his pocket, Laurino said.

The family of Gaymon expressed growing anger and outrage in a statement released late Tuesday in response to a news release issued earlier in the day by the Essex County prosecutor. A family spokesperson, Sheila Edwards, told Patch late Tuesday that the Gaymon family would travel to New Jersey next week to seek answers after burying Gaymon.

Gaymon's funeral will be held Saturday at 1:00 p.m. at Benedict College in Columbia, S.C. The family lived in New Jersey for 20 years before moving to South Carolina and Gaymon's parents still live in Columbia. Gaymon worked at the South Carolina State Credit Union for many years before moving to Atlanta, where he was president and chief executive officer of the Atlanta Employees' Credit Union when he died.

Gaymon not only leaves behind his parents, but also his wife, Mellanie, and children Devin, 15, Jade, 12, Jillian, 10, and Dale, 8.

That new family statement is as follows, in its entirety:

"Earlier today, we issued a public statement expressing our profound concerns and our demands for answers in the fatal shooting of our husband, father, son, brother, uncle, cousin, and in-law, Dean Gaymon, by an undercover Essex County Sheriff Detective. Based upon the news release issued today by the Essex County Prosecutor and other public statements from that office, our grief and concern is now accompanied by intense and growing anger and outrage.

We, the Gaymon family, will be making a direct request to the federal government, through the United States Attorney's Office and Federal Bureau of Investigation in this district of New Jersey, to step in immediately and take over the investigation of Dean's murder.

In reviewing the police officer's statement summarized today by the Essex County Prosecutor, we are without any doubt that the statement is a blatant lie concocted after four days of unexplained silence. 

We note the following:

1. Dean Gaymon was a nonviolent, nonaggressive and nonthreatening person his entire life. It was his very nature to avoid confrontation. Any one of the hundreds of family members and friends who knew Dean will confirm that it would have been completely and totally against his nature to "tussle" with a police officer, to resist authority, to assault a police officer (or anyone else for that matter) or to attempt to disarm an armed police officer. Words such as "I am going to kill you", would not be uttered from him. This is just not who Dean was.

2. We compare Dean's lifelong gentle nature with the fact that there have been nine police shootings in Essex County in the first seven months of this year, six of which have been fatal. We have no doubt in our mind that the problem which led to this killing was not Dean Gaymon, but instead a local community where law enforcement officers are shooting and killing individuals at an alarming rate.

3. Comments of the Essex County prosecutor's spokeswoman quoted in the Atlanta Journal and Constitution today intensify our family's outrage. She stated that this case would be presented to the grand jury "just like all the others", and that "typically" the decision on whether charges will result from a police shooting rests with the grand jury. 

These insensitive and callous comments indicate that Essex County views fatal police shootings as routine matters. Dean Gaymon was an exceptional person and we will not sit by and allow his murder to be treated as a routine or typical matter.

4. The Essex County District Attorney interviewed the police officer Monday evening, the fourth day after Dean's shooting. It is incomprehensible that a responsible prosecutor would delay this long in interviewing an uninjured police officer that fatally shot an unarmed man. Since when does a police officer get to take a long weekend before being questioned about a highly suspicious shooting, such as this one, which led to a death.

5. Contradictory statements have been made regarding the police officer's status. The Essex County Prosecutor's spokeswoman said that the officer was still working. The news release stated that the officer has not been cleared to return to work. The police officer's identity has not been released. We demand that this officer be placed on leave pending a complete and thorough investigation of Dean's homicide by federal authorities and that this officer's identity be released to the public immediately.

6. The statement given by the police officer is illogical, inconsistent, nonsensical, twisted, jumbled, bizarre and, on its face, obviously false. We are absolutely convinced that the officer's statement is a contemptible lie, and the Essex County Prosecutor should be ashamed of presenting this statement to the public prior to the completion of a thorough investigation. Essex County has wrongfully taken Dean Gaymon's life and with him not being here to present his side of the story, they are now attempting to defame him in death and to kill his name and reputation in addition to his body. Our family will not stand by and allow this to occur."

Indeed, two very different pictures had emerged throughout the day Tuesday of Gaymon, of Suwanee, Georgia, who was shot dead on Friday in a Newark park just before attending the 30th Montclair High School reunion he had organized.

"Gaymon's family released a statement earlier on Tuesday calling Gaymon a loving husband and father of four young children. Not only was the 48-year-old a responsible president and chief executive officer of the Atlanta Employees Credit Union, the statement said, but he was also a man of God and a member of the Suwanee Parish United Methodist Church.

"Our family is in a state of shock and devastated that DeFarra Ivan Gaymon, affectionately known as "Dean", was gunned down by an undercover Essex County Sheriff's Officer in a Newark, New Jersey park in broad daylight," while visiting that city to attend his 30th reunion at Montclair High School, the family said.

But Acting Essex County Prosecutor Robert D. Laurino also released details of the incident at 4 p.m. on Tuesday. He said Gaymon was fatally shot at 6 p.m. on July 16 by an undercover Essex County sheriff's detective investigating complaints of public sexual activity at Branch Brook Park in Newark. The 29-year-old officer, an eight-year veteran at the department, is cooperating with the prosecutor's office.

According to a statement released by the district attorney's office, the officer "made an arrest in an unrelated case when he realized he had lost a pair of handcuffs during that arrest. After the suspect in that earlier case was secured, the officer told his partner he was going back into the woods, retracing his steps in an effort to find the missing handcuffs. While bending down to retrieve the handcuffs, the plainclothes officer was approached by Gaymon who was engaged in a sex act at the time."

According to the DA's statement, "The officer pulled out his badge, identified himself as a police officer and informed Gaymon he was under arrest. Gaymon appeared to panic, assaulted the police officer and fled. A foot chase ensued. The officer made repeated commands to Gaymon to stop and submit. Gaymon ignored those commands, did not raise his arms or make his hands visible and repeatedly threatened to kill the officer. Gaymon then lunged at and attempted to disarm the officer while reaching into his own pocket. Fearing for his life, the officer discharged his service weapon, striking  Gaymon once."

The DA's office said the officer immediately called for help and rendered first aid to Gaymon, who was rushed to University Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 9 p.m. No weapon was recovered at the scene. The officer, who was also taken to the hospital, was treated for trauma and released. He has not been cleared to return to work at this time, the DA's office said. He was on medication and under a doctor's care for the weekend, authorities said. An autopsy revealed that Gaymon died from a single gunshot in the abdomen.
 
The district attorney's office is asking anyone with information to contact the Essex County Prosecutor's Office Professional Standards Bureau at 973-266-4250 or the Homicide Unit at 1-877-847-7432. The case will be presented to a grand jury as is required under guidelines established by the Office of the Attorney General in all cases involving police shootings.

Meanwhile, the Gaymon family's earlier statement expressed complete dismay over the incident and obvious anger over how the case has been handled: "Dean was a devoted and loving husband to wife Mellanie, and father to four young children. He was a loving son to his father and mother, Reverend George and Mattie Gaymon, loving brother to his sister Kelly, and was kind and loving to his numerous family members and friends.

"Dean was a successful and prominent businessman in Atlanta. As President and Chief Executive Officer of the Atlanta Employees Credit Union, he managed a financial institution with more than $9 million dollars in assets and more than 3000 members. He knew the importance in giving back to his community and was active in numerous civic and charitable organizations. He was a man of God and member of Suwannee Parish United Methodist Church.

"Dean was a peaceful, caring, friendly and law abiding man. His family and friends loved him as much as he loved us, and we will not rest until the circumstances of his death are revealed and justice is obtained.

"The initial media reports of his death have been inexplicably incomplete and deeply troubling. 

"First, one media report referred to Dean as a 'suspect.' This characterization is false, as Dean was not a suspect in any criminal matter in Georgia or New Jersey.  Second, the media has reported that no statement was taken from the undercover police officer who killed Dean and that this officer was taken to the hospital because he was 'distraught'. The fact that no statement was taken from this individual is highly suspicious and completely unacceptable.

"Third, the family has learned that Newark has experienced a number of police shootings in the month. While we do not know the details regarding the other shootings, in this case, we know that the police killed an innocent man, with no history of or disposition towards violence."

The family is making no further statements but has asked Shelia Trappier Edwards, a family friend, to speak on their behalf.

Joyce Brogdon, a classmate in Newark for the reunion, told the Star-Ledger "nobody's perfect, but he was the closest thing to perfection. He told me he was going to make VP [vice president] by 40. He did. He was going to be CEO. He was. He had the perfect life. He married his high school sweetheart." Read the full Star-Ledger story here.

Gaymon apparently had been looking forward to his Montclair High School 30th reunion and had long ago made plans to take time off from his job as president and CEO of a credit union in Atlanta. He actually was the chairperson for the 30th reunion, with festivities scheduled to begin on Friday.

Gaymon had flown to New Jersey on Thursday night for the gathering, which was scheduled the next evening at the Crowne Plaza Hotel at the Meadowlands.

Read more about Gaymon and his family here.