August 8th 2024.
Four employees of a hotel in Milwaukee have been charged in connection with the death of D’Vontaye Mitchell. The names of the employees are Todd Erickson, Devin Johnson-Carson, Herbert Williamson, and Brandon Turner. There is no information on whether they have lawyers or not, but the Milwaukee County District Attorney's office has issued arrest warrants for them, according to NBC News.
According to a criminal complaint, all four employees are accused of dragging Mitchell out of the Hyatt Hotel on June 30. It all started when Mitchell went into a women's restroom and the employees held him down for about nine minutes on his stomach. One of the employees even shared that Mitchell begged for help and struggled to breathe.
It was later revealed through an official autopsy that Mitchell was morbidly obese and had consumed cocaine and methamphetamine before his death. The county medical examiner stated that he died from "restraint asphyxia" and if he had been turned on his side during the incident, he might have survived.
Mitchell, who was a Black man, has been compared to George Floyd, who also died in a similar manner in 2020 after being pinned to the ground by a police officer in Minneapolis, while repeatedly saying "I can't breathe."
Video footage from the hotel's surveillance cameras shows Mitchell entering the lobby and a gift shop before going into the women's restroom. Within seconds, Turner, who was off-duty but present at the hotel, can be seen dragging Mitchell out of the bathroom by his shirt. During their struggle, Turner punches Mitchell and knocks him to the ground, then punches him six more times before dragging him out of the hotel with the help of a bystander.
Once Mitchell tries to reenter the hotel, Williamson, Johnson-Carson, and Erickson, who was the security manager on duty, join in. They hold Mitchell down on his stomach for about eight to nine minutes until authorities and first responders arrive. Mitchell can be seen trying to break free, but once Erickson hits him with a baton, he stops moving.
In his statement, Erickson claims that Mitchell was strong and resisted them, even attempting to bite them. He maintains that he never intended to hurt or harm Mitchell.
The complaint states, "All of these facts, the gasping, the actions and words of DM, the distress that he was in, show that all four Defendants were aware that holding DM face first on the ground was 'practically certain' to cause impairment of his physical condition."
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump is now part of the legal team representing Mitchell's family. He says that a video circulating on social media, recorded by a bystander, shows the security guards placing their knees on Mitchell's neck and back.
Mitchell's wife is questioning why it took so long for charges to be brought in connection to her husband's death. "These people are on camera taking my husband's life," she said. "They should have been charged the moment they did that."
Aimbridge Hotel, the company managing the Hyatt hotel, has stated that the employees involved in Mitchell's death have been fired. "Our hearts are with Mr. Mitchell's family and loved ones as this case moves forward," the company said in a statement released on Tuesday evening.
If convicted, all four employees could face up to 15 years and nine months in prison. In a similar case, a California man was recently convicted of murder after killing his girlfriend and leaving her four children to die. It is important for justice to be served and for those responsible to be held accountable for their actions.
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