Coroner: Death of Herman Whitfield III, man who died in IMPD custody, was homicide
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The death of an Indianapolis man who died in police custody in April has been ruled a homicide, according to an autopsy report released Wednesday by the Marion County Coroner’s Office.
“We have to prove that the cause of death was caused by the officers and that the use of force was excessive, and resulted in his death,” explains Richard Waples, Whitfield Family Attorney.
According to the Indiana Coroner’s Training Board, a homicide can be “justifiable, excusable, or criminal.”
The coroner’s report lists the cause of death for Herman Whitfield III as “cardiopulmonary arrest in the setting of law enforcement subdual, prone restraint, and conducted electrical weapon use.” The report lists morbid obesity and hypertensive cardiovascular disease as contributing conditions.
“Rather than taking the time necessary, in order to get him the help you needed, they decided to go ahead and physically intervene with him by tasing him first and then handcuffed behind his back,” Waples said.
The coroner found blunt force injuries to Whitfield’s head, neck, torso, right arm and wrist, left wrist, and left ankle, and located a probe barb from a taser in the left side of Whitfield’s abdomen.
Toxicology tests show Whitfield had marijuana, including Delta-9 THC, in his system when he died. The Delta-9 THC found in his system “is consistent with empty packages of Delta-9 THC gummies found in his room,” according to the coroner. No other substances were detected.
Body camera footage provided by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department shows Whitfield being hit at least twice with a taser while having a “mental health crisis” in the dining room of his parents’ home on Marrison Place.
In a lawsuit filed in June, Whitfield’s family said four IMPD officers got on top of Whitfield and handcuffed him while he “writhed in pain” from the taser.
According to the lawsuit, “The officers’ body cam videos clearly reveal Mr. Whitfield gasping for breath and telling the officers at least three times: “I can’t breathe.”
Medics arrived and asked Whitfield to roll over, but he did not respond, IMPD said.
After medics failed to find a pulse, Whitfield was given CPR. He was transported to a hospital, where he died.
Waples has said the family is not just calling for all officers to be held accountable but also for the city of Indianapolis to change their Crisis Intervention Teams to 24/7 instead of “8 to 5.”
“We need professional intervention when people are undergoing mental health crisis, not just a law enforcement.”
I-Team 8 reached out to the Mayor’s Office for comment who referred the team to the Office of Corporate Counsel. A spokesperson from that office says, “Out of respect for the judicial process, OCC doesn’t comment on pending litigation.”
A spokesperson for the City’s Office of Public Health and Safety said in a statement:
“Addressing mental health issues and substance use disorder requires a response at every level. That’s why the City of Indianapolis is dedicating more than $30 million to tackling mental health issues over the next three years, including investing in the city’s first-ever clinician-led 911 response program. In addition to MCAT, this initiative will help ensure individuals who do not need a police response can receive the short- and long-term care they need. ”
IMPD said Wednesday that, with the coroner’s report, “investigators can now move forward with the next steps in the criminal and administrative investigations.”
IMPD Chief Randal Taylor has asked the department’s Critical Incident Response Team to finish the criminal investigation and present their case to the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office by the end of the day Friday, according to IMPD. The prosecutor will review the investigation and determine if criminal charges should be filed.
A separate investigation into Whitfield’s death is being conducted by IMPD Internal Affairs.
IMPD says the officers involved “remain on a non-enforcement, administrative duty.”
I-Team 8 reached out to the Marion County Prosecutors Office and was told they would keep the team posted when they make a decision on criminal charges.
You can read the full statement given by lawyers for the Whitfield family released Wednesday, saying in part:
“Mr. Whitfield did not present a danger to the officers, and there was no need to taser him. Moreover, the officers violated their own training by keeping Mr. Whitfield handcuffed face down after he was restrained, and after he had told them he couldn’t breathe, and when he was not moving or breathing, which led to his death.
For over twenty-five years, the policing community has agreed that officers should not keep a restrained individual in the prone position because of the significant risk of death. Mr. Whitfield,
who was in his family home, needed professional mental health care, not the use of deadly force.”
Mental health resources
- Be Well Indiana
- Indiana Suicide Prevention
- Indiana Department of Child Services’ Children’s Mental Health Initiative
- National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: 988 or 800-273-8255
- More resources