Officials stated Friday that two Indianapolis police officers who were charged with the death of a man who was stunned and restrained on the ground during a mental health crisis had been found not guilty of manslaughter.
More than two years after Herman Whitfield III’s death, a jury acquitted Indianapolis police officers Adam Ahmad and Steven Sanchez of all charges.
According to officials, the 39-year-old’s father contacted the police at 3:20 a.m. on April 25, 2022, requesting an ambulance because his son was experiencing psychosis.
According to the police department at the time, they discovered Whitfield strolling around nude and bleeding from his mouth. After he rushed toward an officer, they used a stun gun on him.
Whitfield passed away while in handcuffs. He died, according to the prosecution, after being left prone and restrained.
Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears stated in a statement following the not guilty verdicts that Herman Jr. and Gladys Whitfield had called for assistance in April 2022, thinking that the police would save their son in a time of need. The outcome was a complete catastrophe.
Whitfield’s cause of death was identified by the autopsy as cardiac arrest while under police duress, prone restraint, and electrical weapon use, with hypertensive cardiovascular disease and morbid obesity being cited as contributory factors. It was determined that he was murdered.
In 2023, Ahmad and Sanchez were charged with violence, reckless homicide, and involuntary manslaughter.
Although Whitfield’s death was tragic, the officers’ defense lawyer, John Kautzman, stated on Friday that the evidence demonstrated the police did their best in trying circumstances and did not conduct any crimes.
According to Kautzman, no one is in the business of going out and hurting people, especially sworn police officers. Helping people is what they do for a living, and that’s what they were attempting to do that day.
Chris Bailey, the chief of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, said in a statementFriday stated his passing was a terrible loss and offered his condolences to the Whitfield family.
Following the event, Ahmad and Sanchez were placed on leave; however, Bailey stated that this was typical protocol and that they will return to regular duty following refresher training.
There are no real winners in cases like this, which are extremely challenging, Bailey noted.
Authorities claimed Whitfield, who weighed 280 pounds and stood 6 feet 2 inches tall, was handcuffed the morning of the incident.
According to authorities, Whitfield was unresponsive when the medics, who were waiting outside the house, urged him to roll over before allowing them inside. According to the police department, Whitfield was transferred to a hospital where he was declared dead after the handcuffs were taken off and CPR was started.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Janna Skelton stated during the trial’s final arguments that the cops’ decision to handcuff him on the ground and leave him in a prone position was the reason for his death, according to Indianapolis’ NBC station WTHR.
According to the station, defense lawyers contended that the handcuffing was appropriate, that Whitfield’s heart stopped before the cuffs were completed, and that the police were carrying out their duties.
Nearly two years after an officer kneed on George Floyd’s neck in Minneapolis in May 2020, Whitfield’s death prompted numerous police departments across to review or strengthen their policies regarding the restraint of detained individuals.
Prosecutor Mears said he was thinking of the Whitfield family.
“While heartbroken for the Whitfield family, I want to recognize the jurors for their consideration of the testimony and evidence over the past five days,” Mears stated.
A request for comment Friday evening was not immediately answered by a lawyer who was reportedly representing the Whitfield family.
According to WTHR video, Whitfield’s father, Herman Whitfield Jr., told reporters, “He’s a wonderful young man,” at the moment the police were charged.
“And he didn’t do anything to be killed,” At that time, Gladys Whitfield wrote.
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