The question whether the victim brandished a gun will remain unanswered unless the cops release sufficient video footage to establish one way or the other.  Cops shouting 'drop the gun!' means nothing--they almost always do that when they've decided to shoot someone, regardless of whether or not their intended victim is armed.

There's also this: I worked for eight years at a 92-bed county psychiatric facility. Most of the people brought in for evaluation were brought by cops. The rule was armed cops couldn't enter the building. So I repeatedly observed them disarming outside at their patrol cars without their seeing me.

Last things they always placed in the trunk were their 'throw-downs'--the once-fired, unregistered pistols they strapped to their calves, beneath their trouser legs, to ensure that whoever they shot 'had a gun'--regardless of whether they did or not.

My late brother-in-law was a former LAPD officer.  He was also black...(continued below):