The indictments of three suburban Denver officers and two paramedics on manslaughter and other charges in the death of Elijah McClain could be a pivotal step toward meaningful police accountability, law enforcement reform advocates say.
鈥淥ur hope has been renewed,鈥� said Candice Bailey, an activist in the city of Aurora who has been a liaison between the community and police and has led demonstrations over the death of McClain, a 23-year-old Black man who was put into a chokehold and injected with a powerful sedative in 2019.
The charges come as Colorado's elected leaders have taken strides to toughen repercussions for officers accused of wrongdoing in the wake of nationwide racial injustice protests last year that reawakened outrage over McClain's death.
State lawmakers passed a sweeping police accountability law, which bans the use of chokeholds like the one used on McClain and requires officers to intervene to stop excessive force from being used. The law has helped lead to charges against some officers and allowed the state attorney general's office to open a civil rights investigation into the Aurora Police Department.
Democratic Gov. Jared Polis ordered the attorney general last year to open a new criminal investigation into McClain's death after a prosecutor opted against charges in 2019. An outside review of Aurora police policies also was quickly launched by the city and Police Chief Vanessa Wilson, who has vowed to regain the public鈥檚 trust since taking over the department last year.
Police stopped McClain as he walked home from the store on Aug. 24, 2019, after a 911 caller reported a man wearing a ski mask and waving his hands who seemed 鈥渟ketchy.鈥� Officers put McClain in a chokehold and pinned him down. Paramedics injected him with 500 milligrams of , an amount appropriate for someone 77 pounds heavier than McClain's 143-pound frame, according to the indictment. He was later taken off life support.
A grand jury on charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide, state Attorney General Phil Weiser announced Wednesday. Some face additional charges. They all turned themselves in and were released on bond.
Marc Sears, president of Aurora鈥檚 branch of the Fraternal Order of Police, which says it鈥檚 the largest union representing police in the city, told the Sentinel Colorado newspaper that 鈥渙ur officers are innocent until proven guilty, and we stand by our brothers.鈥�
Bailey said she cried when she heard about the charges and believes they 鈥渨ill likely change the gravitation of what happens in our community and other communities in this nation.鈥�
Deborah Richardson, executive director for American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado, said the indictments are a step in the right direction but that they don't mean the work is over.
鈥淚t opens the doorway, but in terms of if this is going to be part of a momentum of change, that鈥檚 really up to us," Richardson said. "We don鈥檛 select the police chiefs, we don鈥檛 determine who wears the uniform. But we do elect the public officials that are responsible for that and we need to hold them accountable.鈥�
Richardson also attributed the nationwide shift on 鈥渆gregious behavior by law enforcement鈥� to social media and video that keep the cases alive and accessible. Richardson compared it to her experiences growing up in Atlanta during the civil rights movement. She said national television broadcasts of police beating civil rights protesters marching from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, changed public opinion.
Democratic state Rep. Leslie Herod praised the indictments as a result of community pressure and the police accountability law, which she helped write. The law also eliminated liability protections for police officers, enacted stricter body camera regulations and limits law enforcement鈥檚 use of deadly force.
鈥淛ustice is moving forward because the people of Colorado elevated Elijah鈥檚 story to the entire world and demanded change and because of Sheneen McClain鈥檚 tireless fight for reforms and for Colorado鈥檚 first-in-the-nation police accountability law," she said.
Elijah McClain's mother said she had her first peaceful sleep in a long time after learning about the indictments. Sheneen McClain is pleased the officers involved will lose their jobs and could go to prison, but importantly, that her son鈥檚 death did not get forgotten.
鈥淚鈥檓 definitely satisfied because my goal as Elijah鈥檚 mom was to make sure the world knew what happened to him and somehow hold Colorado accountable for the people that they employ,鈥� she said. 鈥淥ur humanity matters. That鈥檚 one thing Elijah believed in.鈥�
Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved.
