Colorado Governor Jared Polis appointed a special prosecutor on Thursday to investigate the death of 23-year-old Elijah McClain.
On August 24, 2019, Elijah was walking home around 10:30 p.m. after getting his cousin an iced tea.
He was wearing a ski mask because he’s anemic.
Police, who were responding to a call about a suspicious person, accosted Elijah.
When Elijah attempted to avoid contact and walk away from the cops, saying, “Let go of me. I am an introvert. Please respect the boundaries that I am speaking.”
The police threw him to the ground for and placed him in a carotid hold, a form of chokehold that cuts off blood flow through the carotid arteries to the brain.
Elijah was on the ground for 15 minutes.
Like so many other black men who have been brutalized by police, Elijah cried out, “I can’t breathe.”
When paramedics arrived, they injected Elijah with 500mg of ketamine to sedate him. Elijah had a terrible reaction and vomited several times before suffering two cardiac arrests in route to the hospital.
Elijah McClain was declared brain dead and remained on life support for six days before he passed away on August 30.
A forensic pathologist who worked for the coroner claimed he could not determine a cause of death, but said physical exertion more than likely was a contributing factor.
Officers Randy Roedema, Jason Rosenblatt and Nathan Woodyard were temporarily placed on administrative leave. They were never charged for Elijah’s death and they are now back on normal duty.
Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman took to social media to announce he has scheduled a Special Meeting of the Aurora City Council on July 6, 2020, to vote on whether or not to authorize an independent investigation into Elijah’s case.
See his tweet below:
Now, what is there to vote on at this point in the game?!
Governor Jared Polis is taking action:
Today I signed an Executive Order designating Attorney General Phil Weiser to investigate and, if the facts support prosecution, criminally prosecute any individuals whose actions caused the death of Elijah McClain.
Colorado’s attorney general said in a statement that the investigation will be thorough and “worthy of public trust and confidence in the criminal justice system.”
Watch news reports below:
Elijah McClain and his family deserves justice.
