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A Louisville restaurant owner known for feeding police for free died in a police killing — and his body was reportedly left on the street for 12 hours

David McAtee, the owner of a barbecue restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, was killed during a protest early Monday.

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David McAtee, the owner of a barbecue restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, died in a police killing at a protest over the death of George Floyd.

McAtee was the owner of YaYa's BBQ, according to the Louisville Courier Journal . He was known as a "community pillar," his mother Odessa Riley, told the paper.

McAtee, who was 53, often gave food to the community for free, including police officers. "He fed them free," Riley told the paper. "He fed the police and didn't charge them nothing."

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McAtee died early Monday morning after police and the Kentucky National Guard were sent to disperse a crowd in the city, where protests have continued over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Police said they were shot at, and returned the fire, resulting in McAtee's death, according to a statement from Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.

Members of the community were especially angered by reports that his body was left on the street for 12 hours following the killing. The shooting occurred shortly after midnight and his body appeared to be removed from the scene after noon later that day, according to WFPL, a local radio news station .

Beshear on Monday called for an investigation into the shooting and said that body-camera footage should be released by Monday evening, acknowledging that people may not trust claims made by police over what happened. "I'm not asking people to trust our account," Beshear said.

But, later on Monday, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said that the police did not have their body cameras turned on.

The police chief, Steve Conrad, has been fired, Fischer said, according to the Courier Journal . Disciplinary action for the officers involved is forthcoming, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader .

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McAtee's death comes as police escalated protests across the country, sometimes turning violent toward unarmed and peaceful protesters. Police in New York rammed cars into a group of protesters and law enforcement officers around the country have shot non-lethal bullets, pepper spray, and tear gas at protesters, bystanders, and journalists. A police officer was seen in Salt Lake City, Utah shoving an elderly person with a cane to the ground.

Protests have erupted across the country, and in some nations around the world , over the killing of George Floyd, who died after a police officer in Minneapolis pressed his knee on Floyd's neck for over 8 minutes.

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