Topic: Texas jail death caused in part by sheriff's deputies, authorities say (Read 180 times)

Sheriff’s deputy placed knee on Joseph Hutcheson’s back and throat
Hutcheson’s death has been ruled a homicide

The death of a man at a jail in Texas earlier this month was caused in part by sheriff’s deputies restraining him and one placing his knee on the man’s back and throat, authorities in Dallas said on Monday.

Joseph Hutcheson, who suffered from a heart condition and had consumed illegal drugs, died on 1 August of a homicide, according to the Dallas County medical examiner’s office.

It attributed his death in the lobby of the county jail to the “combined toxic effects of cocaine and methamphetamine compounded by hypertensive cardiovascular disease associated with struggle and restraint”. The office declined to elaborate on its findings.

A spokesperson for the sheriff’s office declined to comment on the medical examiner’s initial findings Monday morning. Sheriff Lupe Valdez expects the internal investigation into the incident to be completed within the next two weeks, according to the spokesperson.

The Dallas County sheriff’s office last week released video footage of Hutcheson’s death, after weeks of requests from activists and Hutcheson’s family. In the video, Hutcheson, 48, is seen entering the lobby of the Dallas County jail and acting erratically.

The 40-minute clip features no audio, but family members said Hutcheson was asking for help. Multiple deputies followed him around the lobby before restraining him on the ground with handcuffs, at which point a deputy placed his knee on Hutcheson’s throat and back. Hutcheson had checked himself into a hospital earlier that morning and left “against medical advice” several hours later before arriving at the jail, officials said

Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/aug/31/texas-jail-death-joseph-hutcheson