“F*** this guy, I’m going to hit him.”

Those were the words that came out of a Sacramento police officer’s mouth moments before a 51-year-old homeless man was shot 14 times in July this year.

The footage, posted to YouTube by PoliceCrimes.com, has gained almost half a million views since it went up last week.

Joseph Mann, a mentally ill, homeless man, can be seen attempting to dodge the police car twice before a separate car pulls up next to him and shoots him 14 times, killing him.

After one police officer is heard saying he wants to run down Mr Mann, his partner can be heard replying: “OK, go for it”.

Watch the police footage below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kO3NUXeM89o

According to local newspaper the Sacramento Bee, the incident has sparked protest from religious leaders and prominent black community leaders who argue the police resorted to lethal force without necessity.

The Mann family told the paper they plan on filing a federal lawsuit against the officers, who they say attempted to use the police car as a weapon.

Police said they were following reports of an “erratic” man armed with a knife and a gun, although a gun was reportedly never found.

The officers involved have been put on “modified duty”.

The incident occurred just days after a man with a sniper gun shot five Dallas police officers during a Black Lives Matter protest, and not long after the killings of black people by white police in both Louisiana and Minnesota.