Saturday, May 13, 2023

"Excited Delirium": (Part 3): George Floyd; Minnesota; Nightmarish Lethal Police Restraint: "I can't breath." California will pay $24M for a man who died in police custody after screaming 'I can’t breathe, AP News reports..."California will pay a $24 million civil rights settlement to the family of a man who died in police custody after screaming “I can’t breathe” as multiple officers restrained him while trying to take a blood sample, lawyers said Tuesday. Seven California Highway Patrol officers and a nurse were charged with involuntary manslaughter earlier this year in connection with the 2020 death of Edward Bronstein, age 38. Annee Della Donna and Eric Dubin, attorneys for Bronstein’s young children, said it’s the largest civil rights settlement of its kind by the state of California, and the second largest nationally since the city of Minneapolis paid $27 million in the George Floyd case."


PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "When announcing the criminal charges in March, LA County District Attorney George Gascón said the highway patrol officers failed Bronstein, “and their failure was criminally negligent, causing his death.” A nearly 18-minute video showing the officers’ treatment of Bronstein was released last year following a judge’s order in the family’s federal lawsuit alleging excessive force and a violation of civil rights. Family members have said Bronstein was terrified of needles and they believe that’s why he was reluctant to comply with the CHP initially as they tried to take a blood sample. The video, filmed by the sergeant, shows several officers forcing a handcuffed Bronstein to a mat on the floor as he shouts, “I’ll do it willingly! I’ll do it willingly, I promise!” He continues screaming as six officers hold him face-down — the lawsuit alleged they put their knees on his back — and pleads for help. “It’s too late,” one officer replies. “Stop yelling!” another shouts. “I can’t breathe!” and “I can’t!” Bronstein cries, and an officer responds, “Just relax and stop resisting!” But Bronstein’s voice gets softer and he then falls silent. While he is unresponsive, the nurse continues to draw blood and the officers keep pinning him down. After they realize he may not have a pulse and does not appear to be breathing, they slap his face and say, “Edward, wake up.” More than 11 minutes after his last screams, they begin CPR. Bronstein never regained consciousness and was later pronounced dead."


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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "Bronstein’s death prompted the CHP to change its policies to prevent officers “from using techniques or transport methods that involve a substantial risk of positional asphyxia,” the agency said. Additional training was also ordered for uniformed officers. In September 2021, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law barring police from using certain face-down holds that have led to multiple unintended deaths. The bill was aimed at expanding on the state’s ban on chokeholds in the wake of Floyd’s murder."


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STORY: "California will pay $24M for a man who died in police custody after screaming 'I can't breathe,' published AP News, on May 10, 2023.

GIST: "California will pay a $24 million civil rights settlement to the family of a man who died in police custody after screaming “I can’t breathe” as multiple officers restrained him while trying to take a blood sample, lawyers said Tuesday.


Seven California Highway Patrol officers and a nurse were charged with involuntary manslaughter earlier this year in connection with the 2020 death of Edward Bronstein, age 38.


Annee Della Donna and Eric Dubin, attorneys for Bronstein’s young children, said it’s the largest civil rights settlement of its kind by the state of California, and the second largest nationally since the city of Minneapolis paid $27 million in the George Floyd case. 


The attorneys scheduled a news conference in Los Angeles for Wednesday to provide details.


The settlement comes amid renewed scrutiny of potentially fatal restraints following last week’s death of a New York City subway rider, Jordan Neely, who was placed in a chokehold by a U.S. Marine veteran.


 Bronstein’s death also echoes that of Eric Garner, a New Yorker put in a chokehold by police in 2014 and whose dying words “I can’t breathe” became a chant in protests against racial injustice. Both Garner and Neely were Black.


The Los Angeles County coroner said Bronstein’s death was caused by “acute methamphetamine intoxication during restraint by law enforcement.” 


The report lists Bronstein’s race as white.


Bronstein was taken into custody following a traffic stop on suspicion of driving under the influence on March 31, 2020. He died at a highway patrol station in Altadena, north of downtown Los Angeles, less than two months before Floyd was killed by police in Minnesota as he, too, repeatedly told officers, “I can’t breathe.”


When announcing the criminal charges in March, LA County District Attorney George Gascón said the highway patrol officers failed Bronstein, “and their failure was criminally negligent, causing his death.”


A nearly 18-minute video showing the officers’ treatment of Bronstein was released last year following a judge’s order in the family’s federal lawsuit alleging excessive force and a violation of civil rights.


Family members have said Bronstein was terrified of needles and they believe that’s why he was reluctant to comply with the CHP initially as they tried to take a blood sample.


The video, filmed by the sergeant, shows several officers forcing a handcuffed Bronstein to a mat on the floor as he shouts, “I’ll do it willingly! I’ll do it willingly, I promise!”


He continues screaming as six officers hold him face-down — the lawsuit alleged they put their knees on his back — and pleads for help.


“It’s too late,” one officer replies. “Stop yelling!” another shouts.


“I can’t breathe!” and “I can’t!” Bronstein cries, and an officer responds, “Just relax and stop resisting!”


But Bronstein’s voice gets softer and he then falls silent. While he is unresponsive, the nurse continues to draw blood and the officers keep pinning him down.


After they realize he may not have a pulse and does not appear to be breathing, they slap his face and say, “Edward, wake up.” More than 11 minutes after his last screams, they begin CPR.

Bronstein never regained consciousness and was later pronounced dead.


In a statement, CHP Commissioner Sean Duryee extended condolences to the family and said he would respect the judicial process. 


His office didn’t immediately respond Tuesday to request for comment on the settlement.


The officers, who were put on administrative leave in March, face one count each of involuntary manslaughter and one felony count of assault under the color of authority. If convicted, they could get up to four years in prison.


 The registered nurse was also charged with involuntary manslaughter.


Bronstein’s death prompted the CHP to change its policies to prevent officers “from using techniques or transport methods that involve a substantial risk of positional asphyxia,” the agency said. Additional training was also ordered for uniformed officers.


In September 2021, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law barring police from using certain face-down holds that have led to multiple unintended deaths. The bill was aimed at expanding on the state’s ban on chokeholds in the wake of Floyd’s murder."


The entire story can be read at: 


https://apnews.com/article/california-highway-patrol-police-custody-death-edward-bronstein-c07d84921cd09c8f576b877b5f133d79

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;

SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:


https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985


FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."


Lawyer Radha Natarajan:


Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;

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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!


Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;


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YET ANOTHER FINAL WORD:


David Hammond, one of Broadwater’s attorneys who sought his exoneration, told the Syracuse Post-Standard, “Sprinkle some junk science onto a faulty identification, and it’s the perfect recipe for a wrongful conviction.”


https://deadline.com/2021/11/alice-sebold-lucky-rape-conviction-overturned-anthony-broadwater-1234880143/


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