Published on : 03/09/2020 – 17:13
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The New York State prosecutor opened an investigation Thursday into the circumstances of the arrest of Daniel Prude, an African-American who fell into a coma and then died in March in Rochester after being kept on the ground by police officers. Video of his arrest was released to the public on Wednesday and the police officers involved were suspended.
Video of Daniel Prude’s muscular arrest in Rochester in March resurfaced in the United States on Wednesday, September 2, prompting the New York State prosecutor to open an investigation the next day. In the middle of the afternoon, the mayor of Rochester, Lovely Warren, who is African-American, announced the suspension of the police officers present during the arrest.
In the video, Daniel Prude is seen being held down by police in Rochester. The police in this city in the northeast of the United States, where 40% of the inhabitants are black, intervened on March 23 after the brother of the victim called for help, because Daniel was seized with psychological disorders.
Once there, a police officer finds Daniel Prude lying on the ground in the middle of the street, naked, then handcuffed, according to images that resurfaced on Wednesday, after a formal request from the family to obtain a copy. While Daniel Prude makes incoherent remarks, a police officer places a canvas bag on his head, which annoys him even more.
This canvas hood is called a “spit hood” and is intended to prevent one of the officers from receiving saliva as the man spits and claims to have the new coronavirus, according to one of the officers.
A homicide according to the forensic institute
A policeman then places his two hands on the face of Daniel Prude, who is visibly having trouble breathing and begs for this canvas bag to be removed, before losing consciousness. Officers laughed several times during the arrest.
The man fell into a coma and died a week later after being hospitalized. The forensic institute concluded, after an autopsy, that the death was a homicide, linked to “asphyxiation following a physical constraint”.
“When I saw the video, I was very shocked,” the mayor of Rochester commented on Wednesday. The elected said that the file had been entrusted to the services of the attorney of the State of New York as of the hours which follow the interpellation, as provided for by local law, to avoid any conflict of interest. “Since then, we have been waiting for (they) to decide on the way forward,” she explained. “Unfortunately, it took a long time.”
“Like an animal”
New York State Attorney Letitia James has confirmed the existence of an investigation, without specifying the status of her investigations. Returning the ball, she called on the city of Rochester and the local police to conduct their own investigations.
New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo on Thursday called for the investigation to be concluded “as quickly as possible” and requested the cooperation of local police.
“They treated my brother like an animal,” protested at a press conference Wednesday, Joe Prude, who called for help on the day of the arrest.
The city’s police chief, La’Ron Singletary, who is black, said there was never any question of “covering up” the incident.
This new case comes after a series of brutal arrests of black women and men, like Jacob Blake and George Floyd. The latter’s death on May 25 sparked protests across the country to protest police brutality and denounce the racism faced by African Americans in the United States.
With AFP
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