Mentally ill man was tased several times by SC police in jail before his death, footage shows
By Celine Castronuovo - 05/15/21 08:10 PM EDT
Body camera footage released by a South Carolina sheriff’s office this week revealed that a Black man with a mental illness was tased and pepper-sprayed several times by officers before he died in January in police custody.
The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office late Thursday released hours of footage to the public from the Jan. 5 incident, in which police attempted to forcibly remove 31-year-old Jamal Sutherland from his cell for a bond hearing.
Authorities said that Sutherland was arrested the day before after a fight broke out at a psychiatric facility where he had been receiving treatment for diagnoses of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
The footage was initially withheld from the public until the family of Sutherland gave permission for its release, according to Sheriff Kristin Graziano.
The video showed police shouting at Sutherland to get on his stomach before the man can then be heard saying he can’t get up.
Afterward, Sutherland did not respond to requests from officers to come to the door of the cell to be handcuffed.
The man began yelling as one of the deputies attempted to handcuff him, after which Sutherland was shocked and pepper sprayed several times, causing him to scream in pain.
The officers can be seen in the footage attempting to gain control over Sutherland before putting his hands behind his back and handcuffing him.
One of the deputies then placed his knee on Sutherland’s back for more than two minutes, when Sutherland could be heard saying, “I can’t breathe.”
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https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/553735-mentally-ill-man-was-tased-several-times-by-sc-police-in-jail-before-his
