"I can& #39;t breathe."

The words are so powerful because we naturally recoil at the idea of ignoring another human being& #39;s plea for something as basic as air.

But we found dozens of such deaths in custody.

Unfortunately this will be a long thread. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/06/28/us/i-cant-breathe-police-arrest.html">https://www.nytimes.com/interacti...

Most of us now know about https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1"> George Floyd and https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2"> Eric Garner. Their deaths sparked national outrage.

We wanted to find other cases where people in law enforcement custody died after saying, specifically, "I can& #39;t breathe" according to official witnesses, audio or video.

We ( @ByMikeBaker, @mannyNYT, @laforgia_, @FrancesRobles & I) initially thought we& #39;d be looking at about a dozen cases. We were wrong. At last count, we had at least 70 from 2010 until the present, and more than a dozen others from earlier years.

Months after Eric Garner died in 2014, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="3⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 3" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 3"> Balantine Mbegbu, a 65-year-old Black man, was home eating his dinner in AZ when police officers arrived to check a report of arguing. Officers slammed him to the floor and put their knees on his back and neck. https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/6215454/58/mbegbu-v-phoenix-city-of/">https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/62...

In a number of cases, police were handling calls for health problems. Last year, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="4⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 4" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 4"> David Minassian, a 39-year-old white man, had a heroin overdose at home. His sister, a health worker, gave naloxone and called for medical help. Officers arrived instead. #page=1">https://int.nyt.com/data/documenthelper/7056-minassian-case-minutes/9e41178bcd4f3cd5b5ca/optimized/full.pdf #page=1">https://int.nyt.com/data/docu...

In more than a dozen cases, officers responded with variations of "If you can talk you can breathe." These included https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="5⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 5" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 5"> James Perry ( https://bit.ly/38jb4kI )">https://bit.ly/38jb4kI&q... and https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="6⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 6" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 6"> Craig McKinnis ( https://bit.ly/3dHEObV ).">https://bit.ly/3dHEObV&q... An Ohio jail medic office had the following sign up for a time in 2018.

In that same jail, six years earlier, deputies held https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="7⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 7" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 7"> Robert Richardson ( https://bit.ly/2ZiIM5z )">https://bit.ly/2ZiIM5z&q... face down for 22 minutes by his back and neck after a call that he had suffered a possible seizure. This image from the case is of one of them laughing.

We included jails because those are generally under local control (usually sheriff& #39;s departments). We didn& #39;t include prisons. The youngest person on our list was 19-year-old Daniel Linsinbigler, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="8⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 8" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 8">, who died in a jail under horrific circumstances. http://folioweekly.com/The-Last-Days-of-Daniel-Linsinbigler,10179">https://folioweekly.com/The-Last-...

And when I say "horrific circumstances," I mean that officers strapped him into a chair, pepper sprayed him in the face and then, as his airways were swelling and producing fluid from the spray, put a "spit hood" over him until he died. We saw these hoods in a number of deaths.

People whose deaths involved spit hoods included, this year, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="9⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 9" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 9"> Carlos Ingram Lopez ( https://nyti.ms/2BevmzM )">https://nyti.ms/2BevmzM&q... and https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🔟" title="Taste 10" aria-label="Emoji: Taste 10"> Manuel Ellis ( https://nyti.ms/2NC8D32 ).">https://nyti.ms/2NC8D32&q... There& #39;s also https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1"> Justin Thompson, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2"> Mathew Ajibade, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="3⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 3" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 3"> Ben Anthony C de Baca, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="4⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 4" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 4"> Lashano Gilbert & https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="5⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 5" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 5"> Jack Marden

One of the more wrenching cases, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="6⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 6" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 6">, in which one of these hoods was used was that of an Army sergeant diagnosed with PTSD who was serving 2 days for DUI. His name was James Brown. This video from the El Paso News is disturbing; I& #39;m sorry. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4q55xpbAOI">https://www.youtube.com/watch...

These cases often come to light only through the diligence of local news, if at all. Take the case of https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="7⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 7" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 7"> Willie Ray Banks in Burnet, Texas. Officers Tased him for three solid minutes. @Dexinvestigates wrote the story after fighting for documents. https://www.statesman.com/news/20170522/3-minute-taser-jolt-quick-settlement-was-justice-served-in-burnet-mans-death">https://www.statesman.com/news/2017...

Most of the arrests were not for violent crimes. Frank Smart, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="8⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 8" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 8">, was arrested for scalping Steelers tickets. He had epilepsy and had a seizure, at which point four officers put him face down and lay on top of him for 40 minutes. https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2018/06/04/Allegheny-County-Jail-wrongful-death-federal-lawsuit-settlement-Frank-Smart/stories/201806040097">https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crim...

https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="9⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 9" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 9"> Luis Rodriguez was out with his family when his wife slapped their daughter. Police arrested him instead of her. https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="0⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 0" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 0"> Hernan Jaramillo was mistaken for an intruder in his home. And https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="1⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 1" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 1"> Elijah McClain was walking while wearing a ski mask in the cold. https://gazette.com/video-body-worn-camera-regarding-the-in-custody-death-of-elijah-mcclain/video_9c95d72e-a9f5-11ea-9c86-c3813e519b3f.html">https://gazette.com/video-bod...

The majority of people we found who died after saying "I can& #39;t breathe" were either having a major psychiatric episode or were on stimulant drugs. There are multiple ways to look at this: One says, well, they were behaving erratically, or fighting or trying to run.

But another, promoted in training manuals for law enforcement, warns officers to look for signs that people may be on stimulants or have a psychiatric condition with similar effects, and to then take precautions to avoid dangerous restraint techniques.

In most cases, people died when officers put them face down and put weight on them. This is especially dangerous for people whose heart is racing. It led to the death of https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2"> Marshall Miles, even though the department had warned against it for 14 YEARS. #page=1">https://int.nyt.com/data/documenthelper/7055-soto-second-amended-complaintt/9e41178bcd4f3cd5b5ca/optimized/full.pdf #page=1">https://int.nyt.com/data/docu...

That type of death, from "prone restraint" doesn& #39;t get as much attention as choke holds. But it appeared to play a huge role in these cases, for example in the deaths of https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="3⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 3" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 3"> Byron Williams, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="4⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 4" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 4"> Vicente Vilella, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="5⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 5" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 5"> Rakeem Rucks and https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="6⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 6" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 6"> Branch Wroth.

There were, of course, officers who killed people in choke holds. Sometimes these were barred but a "carotid hold," which cuts off blood to the brain, was allowed. For https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="7⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 7" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 7"> Fermin Valenzuela, the officer thought he was using a carotid hold but evidence suggested it was a choke.

Many times in these "I can& #39;t breathe" cases, there was an issue of risky restraint types, but also a disbelief that the person needed medical care. This struck me as similar to reporting I have seen by @ByNinaMartin on maternal mortality for Black women.

Some people died not because of police restraints but because they had acute medical needs and did not receive help. The handful involving women fell into this category. The death of https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="2⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 2" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 2">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="8⃣" title="Tastenkappe Ziffer 8" aria-label="Emoji: Tastenkappe Ziffer 8"> India Cummings was ruled a homicide due to neglect. https://www.democratandchronicle.com/in-depth/news/2019/05/28/india-cummings-buffalo-ny-obituary-death-lawsuit-police-erie-county-mental-health-rochester/3447827002/">https://www.democratandchronicle.com/in-depth/...

We focused on recent years, but these issues are not new. We found a case from & #39;91, Richard Williams, but did not include it. Same with Matthew Sheridan, who died in & #39;04 after an officer put a biohazard bag over his head, thinking it was a spit hood.

This thread has been long, and I& #39;m sorry. I know it& #39;s a lot. But keep in mind, I haven& #39;t even listed half the cases we found. For a story limited to people who died in custody after being recorded or witnessed specifically saying "I can& #39;t breathe."

OK, so, a few folks are asking for a full list of the people and cases we found. Honestly, that& #39;s what I was starting to try to do with this thread, but then it just became unwieldy, especially when trying to also add context. But I can go ahead and try to do it succinctly.