Current:Home > StocksLawyers to deliver closing arguments in trial of 2 police officers charged in Elijah McClain’s death-LoTradeCoin
Lawyers to deliver closing arguments in trial of 2 police officers charged in Elijah McClain’s death
View Date:2024-12-23 19:20:25
DENVER (AP) — Lawyers will deliver closing arguments Tuesday in the trial of the first two police officers to be prosecuted in the 2019 death of Elijah McClain, a Black man who was put in a neck hold and pinned down by officers in a Denver suburb before paramedics injected him with a powerful sedative.
McClain was stopped while walking home from a convenience store on a summer night, listening to music and wearing a mask that covered most of his face. A 911 caller reported him as suspicious and the police stop quickly became physical with McClain, a 23-year-old massage therapist seemingly caught off guard, asking to be left alone. He had not been accused of committing any crime.
Prosecution witnesses testified that the sedative ketamine killed McClain. But prosecutors also offered medical testimony that the restraint of McClain by Aurora officers Randy Roedema and Jason Rosenblatt triggered a series of health problems that made it hard for McClain to breathe and more vulnerable to a fatal overdose.
Defense attorneys did not call any witnesses, instead using questions for prosecution witnesses to make their case that the officers did not cause McClain’s death.
Roedema and Rosenblatt are charged with manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and second-degree assault — all felonies. An assault conviction carries the most serious penalty, up to 16 years in prison.
Officer Nathan Woodyard — whose trial starts Friday— was the first to stop McClain. Within 10 seconds, Woodyard put his hands on McClain and turned him around. As McClain tried to escape his grip, Woodyard said, “Relax, or I’m going to have to change this situation.”
The encounter quickly escalated, with Woodyard, Roedema and Rosenblatt taking McClain to the ground and Woodyard putting him in a neck hold by pressing against his carotid artery, temporarily rendering him unconscious. The officers later told investigators they took McClain down after hearing Roedema say, “He grabbed your gun dude.”
This moment can be heard but not seen on body camera video. The extensive video of the moments leading to his death were shown repeatedly to jurors.
Two paramedics, Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec, were also charged in McClain’s death and are scheduled to go on trial in November.
The local district attorney did not pursue criminal charges in 2019, but the case was re-examined in 2020 after Gov. Jared Polis asked state Attorney General Philip Weiser to investigate amid protests over police brutality against Black people following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Roedema and Woodyard are currently suspended without pay, Rosenblatt is the only officer involved in the incident who was fired — not for the fatal encounter itself, but for making light of other officers’ reenactment of the neck hold.
veryGood! (96)
Related
- Why Dolly Parton Is a Fan of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's Little Love Affair
- Proof Ariana Madix & New Man Daniel Wai Are Going Strong After Explosive Vanderpump Rules Reunion
- America’s Energy Future: What the Government Misses in Its Energy Outlook and Why It Matters
- Sister Wives' Gwendlyn Brown Calls Women Thirsting Over Her Dad Kody Brown a Serious Problem
- NBA players express concern for ex-player Kyle Singler after social media post
- Congressional Republicans seek special counsel investigation into Hunter Biden whistleblower allegations
- Jennifer Lawrence Reveals Which Movie of Hers She Wants to Show Her Baby Boy Cy
- Bud Light sales continue to go flat during key summer month
- 'Wanted' posters plastered around University of Rochester target Jewish faculty members
- It was a bloodbath: Rare dialysis complication can kill patients in minutes — and more could be done to stop it
Ranking
- Appeals Court Affirms Conviction of Everglades Scientist Accused of Stealing ‘Trade Secrets’
- Despite Capitol Hill Enthusiasm for Planting Crops to Store Carbon, Few Farmers are Doing It, Report Finds
- Why the Ozempic Conversation Has Become Unavoidable: Breaking Down the Controversy
- See the Shocking Fight That Caused Teresa Giudice to Walk Out of the RHONJ Reunion
- Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul press conference highlights: 'Problem Child' goads 'Iron Mike'
- Scandoval Shocker: The Real Timeline of Tom Sandoval & Raquel Leviss' Affair
- Bud Light sales continue to go flat during key summer month
- EPA Finds Black Americans Face More Health-Threatening Air Pollution
Recommendation
-
NFL overreactions: New York Jets, Dallas Cowboys going nowhere after Week 10
-
Lily-Rose Depp and Girlfriend 070 Shake Can't Keep Their Hands To Themselves During NYC Outing
-
DC Young Fly Honors Jacky Oh at Her Atlanta Memorial Service
-
Pills laced with fentanyl killed Leandro De Niro-Rodriguez, Robert De Niro's grandson, mother says
-
Georgia House Republicans stick with leadership team for the next two years
-
Amy Schumer Says She Couldn't Play With Son Gene Amid Struggle With Ozempic Side Effects
-
After brief pause, Federal Reserve looks poised to raise interest rates again
-
Marathon Reaches Deal with Investors on Human Rights. Standing Rock Hoped for More.