This article is from the source 'rtcom' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.rt.com/usa/525001-washington-police-murder-charge-ellis-death/
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Washington state AG charges 3 police officers over killing of black man who died after saying he ‘couldn’t breathe’ | Washington state AG charges 3 police officers over killing of black man who died after saying he ‘couldn’t breathe’ |
| (4 months later) | |
| Two police officers in the US city of Tacoma have been charged with murder and another with manslaughter over the death of a black man who died saying he “couldn’t breathe” as he was being restrained in March last year. | Two police officers in the US city of Tacoma have been charged with murder and another with manslaughter over the death of a black man who died saying he “couldn’t breathe” as he was being restrained in March last year. |
| Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson on Thursday charged Christopher Burbank and Matthew Collins with second-degree murder, and Timothy Rankine with first-degree manslaughter. | Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson on Thursday charged Christopher Burbank and Matthew Collins with second-degree murder, and Timothy Rankine with first-degree manslaughter. |
| Manuel Ellis, 33, died on March 3, 2020 just weeks before the police killing of George Floyd sparked worldwide protests against racism and the treatment of black people by law enforcement. | Manuel Ellis, 33, died on March 3, 2020 just weeks before the police killing of George Floyd sparked worldwide protests against racism and the treatment of black people by law enforcement. |
| Ellis was walking home when he was apprehended by two officers, who eyewitnesses report had knocked him down in an unprovoked attack. The officers said Ellis instigated the incident by trying to enter vehicles stopped at a red light and then charging at police when confronted. | Ellis was walking home when he was apprehended by two officers, who eyewitnesses report had knocked him down in an unprovoked attack. The officers said Ellis instigated the incident by trying to enter vehicles stopped at a red light and then charging at police when confronted. |
| Pierce County’s medical examiner said Ellis’ death was a homicide primarily caused by a lack of oxygen due to being physically restrained. | Pierce County’s medical examiner said Ellis’ death was a homicide primarily caused by a lack of oxygen due to being physically restrained. |
| Several witnesses said he did not resist as he was restrained on the ground by Burbank and Collins, with the second officer having put Ellis in a chokehold, according to one testimony. Ellis said multiple times he “couldn’t breathe” as he was restrained by the police, according to witness testimony cited by the attorney general. Video evidence also showed officers appearing to apply a chokehold – or lateral vascular neck restraint – and shooting Ellis with a taser. | Several witnesses said he did not resist as he was restrained on the ground by Burbank and Collins, with the second officer having put Ellis in a chokehold, according to one testimony. Ellis said multiple times he “couldn’t breathe” as he was restrained by the police, according to witness testimony cited by the attorney general. Video evidence also showed officers appearing to apply a chokehold – or lateral vascular neck restraint – and shooting Ellis with a taser. |
| Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! | Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! |
| Dear readers and commenters, | |
| We have implemented a new engine for our comment section. We hope the transition goes smoothly for all of you. Unfortunately, the comments made before the change have been lost due to a technical problem. We are working on restoring them, and hoping to see you fill up the comment section with new ones. You should still be able to log in to comment using your social-media profiles, but if you signed up under an RT profile before, you are invited to create a new profile with the new commenting system. | |
| Sorry for the inconvenience, and looking forward to your future comments, | |
| RT Team. |