Mississippi police officer chokes unarmed black man to death
Police have announced that an unarmed black man was strangled to death in a physical struggle with a white police officer in Stonewall, Mississippi.
Jonathan Sanders, 39, was riding his horse buggy when he was approached by police officer Kevin Harrington Wednesday.
Sanders’ attorney Stewart Parrish said Harrington then pulled him away from his horse and choked him to death with a flashlight.
Stonewall police confirmed the death by asphyxiation but denied the use of a flashlight.
“We won’t know, until the autopsy is over, what was the actual cause of death, but there was no flashlight used to choke anybody; that is false. And there were no shots fired by either man, there were no weapons at all, and he was not dragged off a horse,” said Michael Street, the chief of Stonewall Police Department.
Police also reaffirmed that Sanders was cooperative and voluntarily stepped down from his buggy, but it is still unknown why Harrington stopped him.
The attorney, who is also a former law enforcement officer, said that there was no reason for the police to choke him to death while they could have easily resorted to Taser and pepper spray to take him under control in case he was resisting.
According to witnesses, the officer first approached a man who talked to Sanders in his car and then decided to approach Sanders.
Witnesses also said during the physical clash Sanders could clearly be heard saying “I can’t breathe!”
Mississippi Bureau of Investigation has since launched a probe into the case. Harrington is also on the leave for an unspecified period.
Stonewall police have asked people to remain calm during the investigations, calling on them not to take the matter onto the streets.
“We don’t need anything being taken out into the street, our community is a good community. We don’t see any issues there. We are going to continue our good relationship,” Street said.
According to the Guardian, American law enforcement officers have killed a total of 547 people by the end of June this year and if the trend continues at its current pace the death toll may reach 1100 by the end of 2015.
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