New York Attorney General to investigate March death of black man hooded by police

This March 23, 2020, image taken from police bodycam video released by the Rochester, New York, Police Department, shows police arresting Daniel Prude after allegedly putting a hood on him. New York State Attorney General Letitia James is investigating the March death of Prude, 41, after police bodycam video footage emerged of him being hooded by police and forced face down on a road. Prude, a black man, died a week after being detained, but relatives and other activists have called for legal action against the officers involved. Prude’s death became public after his family held a news conference September 2, 2020, as outrage mounts in the US over the police treatment of black people across the country. Rochester Police Department / AFP

 

NEW YORK (Eagle News) — Another video of a black man in police custody has emerged. This time the video is from a Rochester Police body camera and is of Daniel Prude naked and hooded by policed being forced face down on a road in March 2020.  The 41-year-old Prude died a week later.

Prude’s death became public after his family held a news conference Wednesday calling for legal action against the officers involved.  This comes as outrage mounts over the police treatment of black people across the U.S.

New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement that her office is investigating the death of Prude.

“The death of Daniel Prude was a tragedy, and I extend my deepest condolences to his family. I share the community’s concerns about ensuring a fair and independent investigation into his death and support their right to protest,”James said. “We will work tirelessly to provide the transparency and accountability that all our communities deserve.

Prude’s brother told reporters he called police to take his brother into custody on March 23 after he suffered a mental health episode.

According to police body cam footage made public Wednesday, when officers arrived Prude was unarmed and naked in the road.

Police ordered an initially compliant Prude to get on the ground, but after being handcuffed he became increasingly agitated before officers put a “spit hood” on him and forced his head to the ground.

He lost consciousness and officers tried to resuscitate him before he was taken to hospital, but he died a week later when life support was switched off.

According to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, an autopsy called the death a homicide caused by “complications of asphyxia in the setting of physical restraint.”

The report also noted a low level of the drug PCP in Prude’s blood, listing it as a complication.

“He was treated inhumanely and without dignity,” community organizer Ashley Gantt was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

“These officers killed someone and are still patrolling in our community.”

Since the death in May of George Floyd at the hands of a policeman in Minneapolis, several U.S. cities have been rocked by protests under the umbrella of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Opponents of the movement have also protested, frequently leading to violent clashes and pushing law and order high up the agenda for November’s presidential election.

(Eagle News Service)