Sons of Police Shooting Victim Sue NJ Town, Police Department

Two men whose father was shot dead by police in New Jersey are suing the town and the local police department.

The two grown sons of Barry Deloatch filed the suit Monday, naming New Brunswick, N.J., and the New Brunswick Police Department.

Walter L. Hudson, a spokesman for the Deloatch family, called again for the U.S. Department of Justice to intervene in the case.

Deloatch, 47, was shot just after midnight on Sept. 22, after two police officers chased him into an alley off Throop Avenue and Handy Street. Prosecutors said the officers, who were on routine patrol, stopped to question Deloatch and two other men, and Deloatch fled.

The officers then followed him into an alley, "where a struggle ensued and resulted in the shooting," prosecutors said in a statement.

He did not have a gun when he was shot by police. Sources said Deloatch was armed with a stick and hitting officers, but his family maintains he had no weapon of any type on him.

New Brunswick police have remained silent on the incident, which has attracted the attention of the NAACP and other prominent organizations.

Mayor James Cahill said last month it was "fully understandable" that people wanted answers but asked for patience as the Middlesex County prosecutors office investigates.

Prosecutors said the two officers have been placed on administrative leave pending the investigation. One has been an officer for two and a half years, the other for six years.