antone black: i can't sleep to this day.

please. please. with his dying breath, he told our mother that he loved her. no mother should have to witness what you witnessed. antone black: no. - no. antone black: he didn't attack nobody, he didn't rob a bank, he didn't kill nobody. that's not right. everything seems to escalate. i'm tasing him-- tasing him. lester holt: i'm curious how many times you've used your taser as a police officer. none. you just don't tase people. i don't see any indication of malice. i don't see any indication of indifference. - he needs help. - yeah. jason johnson: i really felt like it was a professional response. from a medical examiner's point of view, this was no accident. it's death at the hands of another, and that's a homicide. i want the truth to be known about my brother. [music playing] hello, and welcome to "dateline."

anton black's star was on the rise. the 19-year-old was a skilled athlete, and aspiring model. but loved ones said anton's life was cut short at the hands of police as his mother watched in horror. soon, alarming videos emerged, sparking outrage in the community, and fueling a family's fight for justice. here's lester holt with "what happened to anton black." lester holt: it was saturday evening, september 15, 2018, in the small, quiet town of greensboro, maryland. around 7:00 pm, denise sala and her husband tony were driving home from church. denise sala: we could see these two black boys. the bigger boy had the smaller boy in a headlock. he put the full nelson, picked him up, swang him.

this definitely was not horseplay. so at that point, you wanted to keep them in your sight. yes. lester holt: denise and the younger boy locked eyes. and i said, are you all right. no, he said. so you dialed up 911? i'm the one that called 911. lester holt: what denise didn't know was that the boy's, 19-year-old anton black and a 12-year-old named xavier, were neighbors who had known each other for years. lester holt: within minutes, a police car arrived. greensboro officer thomas webster got out. and the officer was doing nothing but standing like this on the other side of the police talking to them. so as far as you can turn, he was acting professionally? - yes. - definitely. oh, definitely. lester holt: but something went wrong.

there was a foot chase and a struggle. police officers pinned anton to the ground. soon, emergency workers were on the scene, attempting to resuscitate anton on the front doorstep of his home as his mother jannell looked on. lester holt: she telephoned anton's father, antone black. if you've got a phone line that you're not able to see what's happening at the time? no, but i hear what's happening. i was-- i was telling her to get him up. lester holt: but it was too late. can you tell me how and when you heard the news that your brother had died? ah, yes. our mother called and she said, your brother's dead. lester holt: latoya holly, anton's older sister, immediately headed to the hospital

to see her baby brother one last time. they had a white sheet all the way up to his neck, and his eyes were red, like someone had smothered him. you've probably never heard of anton black. neither had we. we found out about anton while reporting on a case you have heard of, the murder of george floyd under the knee of officer derek chauvin. we learned that a controversial expert who testified in chauvin's trial had also played a central role in anton black's case two years earlier. so we began to look into it, and found that anton's case, like george floyd's, touches many pressure points in the heated debate about policing in america, especially in the black community. our story is about the kind of incidents that occur all too often, but unlike george floyd, seldom make national news.

how you guys doing? my name is anton black, and i hope you liked my introduction video. yeah, this is my baby boy, anton. lester holt: anton was a standout athlete, voted his high school's homecoming king twice. antone black: he was a star wide receiver on the football team. set. go. and mid-atlantic champion in the 100, 200, and the high jump. he was very exciting young man to see. i used to love to see him run, oh, and jump. lester holt: after graduating, anton enrolled in college. but his sister latoya said his true passion was to build a career as a model. he had the looks. definitely. gorgeous. lester holt: but in that summer of 2018,

anton's behavior changed. to me, all of a sudden, he got moody, he was crying, he was upset all the time. he went to a hospital? yes. lester holt: anton was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, a condition that often develops in the teenage years. he spent a week in the hospital. 10 days after he was discharged, anton was dead. no mother should have to witness what you witnessed. no. no. i never thought this would ever happen. he didn't attack nobody, he didn't rob a bank, he didn't kill nobody. he's at his mother's doorstep, all they wanted to do was go home. he's home, and you don't get off of him? that's not right. i'm sorry. lester holt: anton's family was shattered, angry, and highly suspicious. they wanted answers.

and soon, they learned there might be a way to get them. there was a body cam video, but the family would have to fight to see it. craig melvin (voiceover): coming up. what would that video reveal? you'll see in detail exactly what happened, and hear how town leaders had been warned. i was angry. the community had band together to try to prevent something like that from happening. craig melvin (voiceover): when "dateline" continues. my moderate to severe crohn's disease... ...and my ulcerative colitis symptoms... ...kept me... ...out of the picture. now... ...there's skyrizi. ♪i've got places to go...♪ ♪...and i'm feeling free♪ ♪control of my symptoms means everything...♪ ♪...to me♪ ♪control is everything to me♪ and now... ...i'm back in the picture. feel significant symptom relief at... ...4 weeks with skyrizi.

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i think that this product is a gamechanger for my patients. try pronamel mouthwash. lester holt: that shy smile, those dance moves, his bright future stolen, anton's dad says, from all of them far too soon. he's the big alligator on the little pond. he's an actor. he's a model. he's a champion runner, long jumper. this boy was a good child. lester holt: anton's best friends, devin robinson and zach smith, were crushed. zach, what was your reaction when you learned about anton's death and how he died? i don't even know how to explain it, honestly. i never felt nothing like it, you know? i just bust out in tears because that's been my friend for so long. lester holt: christina robinson is devin's mother, and was like a second mom to anton. anton was such a sweet kid.

small town kid, i guess, you could say from kent county-- kent county, maryland. he always had a big smile on his face to greet you. very respectful, very driven. lester holt: christina says, to understand what happened to anton, you have to understand greensboro. she's lived here for nearly two decades. the town has fewer than 3,000 residents, just 7% are black. despite the area's deep history of slavery, christina called it her modern day mayberry. were there lingering racial issues there? not that we had ever experienced. lester holt: she says she felt safe raising her black son in greensboro, in large part because of the police. a tiny force with just three officers. they took the time to know the people in the community. it was nothing for them to just stop by and say, hi, and talk to you on the street, talk to you in the store. yeah, we hear the term community policing. in this kind of community, i assume it's right there.

yeah. we had the dream. lester holt: christina became friends with jeff jackson, greensboro's police chief for 15 years before anton died. in a small town, how much involvement do you have with the people that you police? you're involved with them every day. you know when kids are born. you stop by people's houses and you get pictures with kids going to the prom. lester holt: but not everybody in town appreciated chief jackson's style. there came a point where things began to change in terms of how you were viewed. can you tell us what that point was? when joe noon got elected mayor. lester holt: joe noon is the father of anton's friend zach. he's lived in the greensboro area for 25 years. in 2011, noon ran for mayor, a part-time position, and won by a single vote. you know joe noon from-- what? high school? yeah. i helped campaign for him, and would babysit people's kids so they could go to the polls

and vote. you believed in him? mm-hmm. lester holt: but christina started to have doubts when her old friend said he wanted to change the leadership of the police department. and what were your concerns? i was getting a lot of complaints from the public and the business owners in town in reference to the police chief. chief jackson? that's correct. getting a lot of complaints about speeders, and people running stop signs, and nothing was getting fixed. so was chief jackson being ineffective as chief? yes. lester holt: jackson says he was alarmed by the new mayor's focus, especially because violent crime was virtually nonexistent in their town. he told me on two separate occasions, he wanted people scared to drive through greensboro. honest to god, i'm not lying to you. he told me, i want people scared to drive through greensboro. and i went, no. no. that's not the way you police small town america.

the word is that you wanted to replace him with somebody tougher. not tougher. i want to say more proactive within the streets of greensboro. is that the same thing as being more aggressive? no. i wouldn't say aggressive. i would say be more proactive in police work. so tell me what you thought when you heard that jeff jackson, the police chief, was being fired. i said, what do you mean? and he said, they want a tougher police force. it makes you nervous, because who are you being tougher on? unfortunately, a lot of times they tend to be the black and brown kids. lester holt: young people like her son devin and his best friend anton black. her worry turned to fear when she heard that the new police chief, michael petyo had welcomed to the force a new officer, thomas webster, who had a troubling past. a lot of people were very concerned-- scared. craig melvin (voiceover): coming up.

christina robinson: i started to watch the video, and that disturbed me. what are you bringing to this town? craig melvin (voiceover): when "dateline" continues.

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that's why mark farrell is endorsing prop d. because we need to tackle our drug and homelessness crisis just like mark did as our interim mayor. mark farrell endorsing prop d, to bring the changes we need for the city we love. lester holt: when anton black died, christina robinson felt as if she'd lost her own son. what hurt even more was the feeling that she'd seen it coming, ever since she googled greensboro's newest police officer thomas webster.

i started to watch the video, and that disturbed me. thomas webster: all right, i got one. another one fled around the store. lester holt: the video, which is hard to watch, is from august 2013 when webster was an officer in dover, delaware. he and another officer were responding to a call about a fight when they stopped one of the suspects, lateef dickerson-- thomas webster: get on the [bleep] ground. lester holt: --and ordered him on his hands and knees. get on the ground. lester holt: just as dickerson began complying, webster kicked him in the face, knocking him out and breaking his jaw. but it took two years for that video to go public, only after webster was charged with second degree assault. folks wanted answers, they wanted justice. lester holt: la mar gunn, then president of the naacp of central delaware, led protests outside the courthouse. a packed courtroom in kent county today.

lester holt: at his trial, webster testified he was afraid dickerson was reaching for a gun. he said he meant to kick dickerson in the upper body, but missed and kicked him in the face. after three days of deliberations, webster was acquitted. it sends us years backwards. we're clearly not happy with this response. lester holt: in an agreement with the city of dover, webster resigned and left with his pension, $230,000. i thought he was done. lester holt: but two years later, la mar heard disturbing news. webster had been hired as an officer at the greensboro, maryland police department, just 25 miles away. i felt betrayed. i couldn't believe it. did you feel the need to warn the folks in greensboro? the moment i learned that webster was in the process of being hired in greensboro, i made a phone call. lester holt: la mar says he spoke with

the greensboro city manager. i went step by step as to why-- why you would have to hate the people you serve to unleash that type of monster on unsuspecting citizens. you called him a monster? yes. lester holt: la mar wasn't the only one to warn greensboro officials about officer webster, and that video. my first phone call was to joe noon. and i was like, what are you bringing to this town? do you know about the tape? you had seen that video? i did see the video. what did you make of that video? that video was nasty. it was not good to the human eye at all. you know, i wasn't there. lester holt: nonetheless, when greensboro's new chief suggested hiring webster, mayor noon supported it. saying, webster deserved a second chance. so he was hired.

that bothered christina. you knocked on doors on the street trying to stop the hiring of officer webster? yes. lester holt: christina drafted a petition to reverse webster's hiring. because it just didn't feel like he was a good fit for our community. lester holt: her petition didn't work. the town council, comprised of five white men, decided webster would remain on the force. though he didn't have a vote, christina was furious with her old friend, the mayor. do you remember what you told him? that if anything happens to-- to my son or to one of my kids-- because i mean, i was like the community mom-- that i was coming for all of them. thomas webster: i'll be addressing here in a second. lester holt: six months later, it was officer webster who responded to that 911 call and initiated the chase that ended with the death of anton black. i was angry because i could see how the community had

band together to try to prevent something like that from happening. lester holt: anton's family wanted answers, and thought webster's body cam and anton's autopsy report might provide them. we were asking for just what happened, and no one was talking to us. lester holt: so they called attorney renee swafford for help. that was the hardest thing i have ever done in my legal career is when i went to that home and met the family and saw jannell black. i will never forget what she looked like. what kind of information were you getting, or maybe not getting, from authorities? we weren't getting any information. lester holt: so renee enlisted the help of an investigator who learned the basic details. anton had spent that afternoon at the park playing basketball, where he ran into xavier,

the 12-year-old neighbor he'd known for years. xavier: the anton i knew was sweet. lester holt: xavier spoke about the anton he knew with a maryland state police investigator. xavier: yeah he was nice. back then, i could have walked around this whole town with him, and he'd be perfectly fine. lester holt: but that day, xavier said while he and anton were walking home from the park, anton started roughhousing. xavier: soon we hit the first spot at the bridge, that's when he got me in a headlock. lester holt: xavier was afraid anton was going to throw him off the bridge. xavier: i kept telling him, let me go, bro. so when the lady pulled up, she was like, you want me to call the cops? i said, yeah, because i can't swim. call the cops. lester holt: but nothing in xavier's statement explained anton's death. without answers, anton's family grew more outraged, especially because officer webster remained on the job. we spoke to the town council members,

we begged them to put webster on leave. we even said it wouldn't matter if it was paid. and they wouldn't-- they wouldn't hear our cries. joe noon: all right, good evening, everyone-- lester holt: finally, four months after anton's death, the greensboro town council met to discuss webster's fate. we have to go in a closed session. lester holt: while mayor noon and the council deliberated behind closed doors, anton's supporters went across the street to a church to await their decision. time going by is not helping. it hurts so bad. you have no idea who they took from us. lester holt: christina robinson's mayberry had begun to unravel. we had officers that cared, that were invested. and if those officers were here on that day, it would have never escalated to the level

that it was escalated to. the fact of the matter, anton black is a black teenager. the fact of the matter, he lost his life in the custody of white police officers. lester holt: and then came the news. ok, they're ready. lester holt: the town council had made a decision. joe noon: all in favor say, aye. group: aye. joe noon: all opposed say, nay. lester holt: officer webster was put on administrative leave with pay. for anton's family, it was just the first step. this is an injustice to my child. lester holt: they still didn't know how anton died. that was about to change. craig melvin (voiceover): coming up. some body cam video goes public. i'm tasing him. lester holt: i'm curious how many times you've used your taser as a police officer. none. craig melvin (voiceover): when "dateline" continues.

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hi, i'm richard lui with a news update. vice president harris making an appearance on snl this weekend days before the election. her cameo came during the cold open alongside actress and comedian mayor rudolph betrays her. the appearance coming just hours after the new nationally recognized iowa poll showed vice president kamala harris leading former president trump in the hawkeye say within the margin of error. trump winning iowa 2016 and 2020. for now, back to dateline. i'm craig melvin. anton black died in a violent struggle with police, and his family wanted answers. despite their pleas, local officials refused to release video of the encounter. but soon, they would have no choice. anton's loved ones were about to witness

every excruciating moment of the troubled teens fight to survive. back to lester holt with "what happened to anton black." lester holt: in the months after anton black's death, his family and friends turned their anger into action. [chanting] they formed a group, the coalition for justice for anton black, and they took to the streets. [chanting] he was such a beautiful person. till this day, we still do not have answers. lester holt: anton's family had been asking for the body cam video of his encounter with officer thomas webster to be released. and in january 2019, weeks after webster was put on leave, maryland's governor larry hogan ordered it to be made public. the video, initially shown to reporters, captured the final moments of anton's life. it starts with officer webster talking to xavier and anton.

lester holt: right before webster turned on his camera, xavier told him that anton was schizophrenic, which wasn't accurate. anton had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. lester holt: when webster went to handcuff anton, he gave the officer an odd response-- thomas webster: put your hands by your back. lester holt: --and began to run away. webster radioed the dispatcher. lester holt: three other men joined the pursuit, two off duty officers from nearby jurisdictions who happened to be in the area, along with a civilian on a motorcycle. [radio chatter] anton ran to his home and locked himself in a car outside. officer webster arrived moments later, and without saying a word, he drew his baton

and smashed the driver's side window. then he fired his taser-- lester holt: --but it didn't work. lester holt: anton grappled with the men up a ramp toward his front door as he cried out for his mother. lester holt: the officers then wrestled anton to the ground-- anton black: that was really my mom. lester holt: --with the help of the civilian who had a confederate flag on his motorcycle helmet. lester holt: anton's mother jannell heard the commotion and stepped outside. lester holt: webster began speaking with her. lester holt: anton, handcuffed and on his stomach, was kicking his legs, so webster decided they should shackle them, too. lester holt: anton continued to cry out.

anton black: i'm going to-- thomas webster: shackles in the trunk of the car. lester holt: officer webster told anton's mother he wasn't in any legal trouble. lester holt: anton went limp. lester holt: that's when emts were called, but they could not revive him. i saw-- and that's why i can't sleep to this day. i seen him begging for his life. you know, he's hollering, mommy. they never moved. they never got off of him. when i opened up the door, how come they didn't let him up? i'm standing right there. it just seemed so unreal and unnecessary to me. and when i saw him go limp in the video, they still didn't get off of him. thomas webster: i got him. i got him. lester holt: christina blamed the police,

but she knew many of her white neighbors sided with the officers. has it split the community? it definitely did. along racial lines? yes, definitely did. he patrolled a lot when-- lester holt: one white person who did think the police did something wrong was former chief jeff jackson. when we asked him about the video, he said the deadly situation could have been avoided entirely. jannell black: anton. i learned years ago, it was a whole lot easier to talk people into handcuffs than to fight them into handcuffs. lester holt: he took us to where webster first encountered anton to show us how he might have handled it. so let's move out of the way. find out what's going on, start slowing this thing down. lester holt: slowing things down was important, jackson says. especially, because webster had been told anton was mentally ill. apparently, he is a schizophrenic. lester holt: when anton ran off, jackson says, webster should have just let him go. and instead, made sure xavier was ok. i was like, where's the victim?

what happened to him? he's a 12-year-old boy. you just let him-- where's he at? lester holt: the reason jackson wouldn't have worried about anton fleeing, he knew him. he'd watched anton grow up, and worked with him and his friends to launch a youth group. if anton took off running, it's like, ok. i know where you live. i know where your mom's at. ok. lester holt: a perfect example, he says, of the benefits of community policing. jackson says, webster made the situation even worse when he smashed that window. you keep escalating this. you busted a window. if he's having a schizophrenic episode, you're just keep exciting it and elevating it. what's wrong with walking, going up there and going, hey? do you want to talk to you? yeah. say, come over here. come here. what's wrong with just keeping it low key? officer: tase him. tase him. thomas webster: i'm tasing him. taser. taser. taser. lester holt: i'm curious how many times you've used your taser as a police officer.

none. now you're the police chief who lost his job. so a lot of people will see it through that lens here, and that this is kind of monday morning quarterbacking. you can have your opinion. this is my style of policing. i did it for 15 years here. thomas webster: stop. you're under arrest. lester holt: so what did webster have to say about what happened that day? a lot. craig melvin (voiceover): coming up. the window. craig melvin (voiceover): the taser. stop. stop. you're under arrest. i think it meets the professional standard. craig melvin (voiceover): when "dateline" continues. when i was diagnosed with h-i-v,

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thomas webster: all right, listen-- lester holt: a day after officer webster's body cam footage was released, the "baltimore sun" wrote an editorial saying there was no justification for such aggression by the police. and not everyone was happy about that. in 2019, you wrote a letter to the "baltimore sun" about this case. what was the point you wanted to make? the point i wanted to make-- and i think it's a point that i could have made in any number of cases involving law enforcement officers-- is that there is an urgency to judge

the actions of police officers before all the facts are known. lester holt: jason johnson is president of the law enforcement legal defense fund, which provides support to officers charged with crimes. thomas webster: the black male wearing all black just fled on foot. lester holt: after watching that video, how would you describe officer webster, and the other officers' actions? i think they responded to a very difficult situation. lester holt: he said anton black's death was a tragedy, but he said none of the officers were to blame. i don't see any indication of malice. i don't see any indication of indifference to mr. black's health or well-being. and so, i think it meets the professional standard. he needs help. officer: yeah. jannell black: so he's not locked up? officer: no. thomas webster: no. no. no. no. we're going to get him-- all right, we're-- thomas webster: --to the hospital. jason johnson: they seem to recognize that this was primarily a mental health emergency. they seemed empathetic in their communication, both with mr. black and with mr. black's mom. i really felt like it was a professional response. lester holt: but johnson did question some of officer webster's choices, like when

he smashed the car window. jason johnson: i do think that that is the one key moment that i think there's fair criticism. an objective observer could look at that and certainly could question-- and i think the questions are reasonable ones. was tasing a good option in this case? i think the use of the taser was objectively reasonable. i don't think that it was the best choice, candidly. lester holt: officer webster, through his attorney, declined multiple requests for an interview with "dateline." but he did speak on the record. lester holt: after anton black's death, the maryland state police launched an investigation and interviewed webster about what happened that night, starting with the initial 911 call. lester holt: once on the scene, he said he reassessed the situation.

lester holt: webster said he had good reason to smash that window. lester holt: as for the taser-- lester holt: when it didn't work, webster says they had no choice but to wrestle anton to the ground. thomas webster: stop. stop. you're under arrest. lester holt: at the end of the hour-long interview-- lester holt: --webster didn't express regret, instead he said he was grateful.

lester holt: a struggle, he says, he couldn't have handled alone. lester holt: safely, of course, is not a word anton's family would use to describe how it ended. they think a crime was committed, and not by anton. so what should happen to webster, in your opinion? he needs to go to jail and don't get out. lord, have mercy. lester holt: the death of anton black raised so many difficult questions about race, mental illness, use of force, theories of policing. and now, anton's family was about to get answers about how he died, and whether anyone would be held accountable for his death. anton's autopsy report is released,

and sparks a new controversy. craig melvin (voiceover): coming up. from what you've learned from the anton black case, what is the proper manner of death? homicide. anton black was in a fight, and lost. and that is a homicide. craig melvin (voiceover): when "dateline" continues. medicare advantage helps me do my job better because it makes me feel comfortable that these patients are able to afford the medications that i'm discussing with them. and if i recommend they need to get their vision done this year or their dental they will be able to do that. medicare advantage helps me take care of my patients like i would want somebody to take care of my family, my mom, my dad, and me someday.

lester holt: four months after anton black's

death on his own front doorstep, the autopsy report came out. the manner of death, accident. it's an accident? you begging for your life, and they don't get off of him. how is it an accident? lester holt: the report was co-signed by maryland's then chief medical examiner dr. david fowler. you'll want to remember his name. it said that while it was likely that the stress of the struggle contributed to his death, no evidence was found that restraint by law enforcement directly caused, or significantly contributed to it. the cause of death, it stated, was a heart defect, and a significant contributing condition was bipolar disorder. the day after the autopsy report was released, the county prosecutor announced no charges would be filed. you took somebody's life, and you don't even get charged? it's kind of like they were exonerated as soon as anton's

autopsy report was signed. lester holt: the role of the medical examiner was yet another issue captured in the harsh light of anton black's death. our role in legal cases plays a huge part. lester holt: dr. roger mitchell is a former chief medical examiner for washington, d.c. today, he's head of pathology for howard university, and an expert in investigating deaths like anton's that occur in police custody. he was breathing, running, talking before the fight. and he's no longer breathing, talking, running, and he dies. lester holt: dr. mitchell says, even if anton had a heart defect, the reason he died was due to that struggle. men laying on him that are twice his size, that heart issue could now show itself to be fatal. lester holt: his bipolar condition was listed as a contributing cause. did that make sense to you?

in the case of an altercation with another person that leads to death, i'm not quite sure why the bipolar is on the death certificate. lester holt: anton's autopsy noted petechiae and hemorrhages, often a sign of asphyxiation. if there's an asphyxial component, if he's able to breathe under these law enforcement officers, we can't see that, right? from what you've learned from the anton black case, what is the proper manner of death? homicide. anton black was in a fight and lost, and that is a homicide. lester holt: which is not the same as a murder. and it doesn't mean webster or anyone else committed a crime. whether they did anything wrong, that's a legal matter? that is correct. lester holt: here, is where anton black's case intersects with george floyd's. when former minneapolis police officer derek chauvin went on trial for murder, his defense called an expert witness. i was watching it live from my office.

chauvin's expert was none other than dr. david fowler, the same medical examiner who co-signed anton black's autopsy report. potentially carbon monoxide poisoning. lester holt: dr. fowler told the jury that despite chauvin's knee on floyd's neck, in his expert opinion, the manner of death was undetermined. i was appalled. i began writing an open letter. an open letter that called for an investigation in all deaths in custody in maryland. lester holt: in september 2021, maryland's attorney general launched a review of all in-custody death cases during the 17 years dr. fowler served as the state's chief medical examiner. of the 1,300 cases on that list, the ag's office determined about 100 required further examination. if anton black is an accident, and george floyd is undetermined, then

how many other cases that we have no idea about are accidents and undetermined? lester holt: amid all the unanswered questions that still linger in this case, there is one remarkable statement made by, of all people, jason johnson, who makes his living defending the police. i can tell you with some-- some degree of certainty that-- that thomas webster should not have been at greensboro police officer at all. get on the ground. lester holt: it turns out, that 2013 kick was only part of webster's past. we obtained his internal affairs file. during his 10 years as an officer in delaware, it lists 32 incidents involving a use of force. 26 were with african-americans. and all but 10 involve webster deploying his taser. but the maryland police commission that certified webster to work in greensboro didn't have that information. an investigation found that chief michael petyo, the man who hired webster,

intentionally withheld it. 11 months after anton's death, webster was decertified as a police officer and fired. judge: let's call the case of "state versus petyo." lester holt: chief petyo was charged with misconduct in office for making factual misrepresentations. he pleaded guilty and was given three years probation by a judge who let petyo know how serious his crime was. is his prosecution enough? no. no. it's something, but it's not enough. lester holt: and so, in anton's memory, his family fought to change the law in maryland to make police misconduct records public. the veil of secrecy around police records has prevented transparency and accountability.

lester holt: in september 2021, anton's family and supporters held a press conference the day before a new law was enacted. it's been three years now, and we're still grieving. lester holt: they called it anton's law. my son was george floyd before george floyd. lester holt: in august 2022, three days after we first broadcast anton's story, his family held a press conference to announce they had settled a civil suit again officials. the settlement included changes to use of force policies, plus the family received $5 million. they later settled with the state of maryland and dr. david fowler for $100,000. the coalition for justice for anton black received $135,000. in the settlement, neither the state nor dr. fowler admitted any wrongdoing. but for anton's grieving parents, no amount of money

will ease their pain, or their outrage. and there's no justice, nobody's charged. if it hadn't been for lester holt, and "dateline" it would never got out. it'll always be a tragedy because in anton's case, it didn't have to happen. lester holt: there are many lessons to be learned in the wake of anton black's tragic death. about policing, and pain, friendship, and forgiveness. do you hold joe noon responsible at all in the death of anton? no. i know his heart, and i know that he cares about my son. i know he cared about anton. do you feel any responsibility for this tragedy? i do. just as a human being, as being the mayor, too, and a friend of anton, and his family.

i do. it sits with me every day. do you feel that, perhaps, you let anton down? i feel that i probably let everybody down. how do you want us to think of and remember anton? as a good child, a good son, a good citizen. i want anton to be a symbol of what could happen to anyone's child. i want anton to be remembered forever. now, that's all for this edition of "dateline." i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. hello, i'm craig melvin, and this is "dateline." hello, i'm craig melvin, and this is "dateline." i just flipped out.