As communities around the world gather together to protest police brutality, another story has emerged with an ending that is all too familiar. Tacoma, WA police officers tried to arrest Manuel Ellis on March 3rd when they claimed to have seen him "trying to open car doors of occupied vehicles." From there, the police said that Ellis was "combative" which is why they took aggressive measures to physically restrain him.
CNN reports that new audio and video footage has emerged revealing that Ellis was yelling, "I can't breathe" as police officers asked for hobbles. Minutes after he's heard screaming this, the police said they demanded for an ambulance to arrive. Ellis' family lawyer said that the family is positive that it's him on the recording. Police have also confirmed this, though they said that there is additional video footage. When he said he couldn't breathe they rolled him on the side and he was breathing and he was talking," Ed Troyer, spokesman for the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, claimed.
Regardless of what the police say might have happened, Ellis was unarmed and the autopsy revealed that his murder was the caused by respiratory arrest due to hypoxia caused by physical restraint, a condition where not enough oxygen is flowing through the body.
After the four officers involved in Ellis' death were placed on leave, Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards demanded that they are arrested and prosecuted to the fullest degree. "In this moment, at this time, based on the information I know today, the officers' actions we saw on this video tonight only confirmed that Manuel Ellis' death was a homicide," Woodards said Thursday in a news conference. "I am asking -- no, I am telling you that I am going to call for several things, and the officers who committed this crime should be fired and prosecuted to the full extent of the law."
Manuel Ellis Died After Telling Police "I Can’t Breathe," Ruled A Homicide
Manuel Ellis died in early March after being involved in an altercation with police, and a medical examiner ruled his death a homicide by physical restraint.
“I Can’t Breathe” police-related deaths are becoming far too common. Eric Garner uttered those words when he was choked to death by officers, George Floyd cried out for his mother and begged an officer not to kill him before making “I can’t breathe” his final words on earth, and on March 3 in Tacoma, Washington, 33-year-old Manuel Ellis said the same phrase as police restrained him.
Mark Makela / Stringer / Getty Images
According to an autopsy, Manuel Ellis died of respiratory arrest due to hypoxia and being physically restrained. He was handcuffed at the time, and the medical examiner also determined that heart disease and methamphetamine intoxication were contributing factors. It was 11:30 p.m. on March 3 when police reportedly saw Ellis attempting to break windows of vehicles and pulling at handles. A police report states that Ellis walked up to the patrol car and told police that he was seeking help. He allegedly also mentioned that he had warrants for his arrest.
Police claim that while speaking with Ellis, he grabbed one of them by his vest. The second officer reportedly exited the patrol car, wrestled Ellis to the ground, and handcuffed him. While it was noted that no batons or tasers were used, nor was a knee placed on Ellis’s neck, he was somehow restrained enough to cause his death. It has not been specified what that restraint was, but it was reported that Manuel Ellis stated, “I can’t breathe.”
The father of two was remembered by his loved ones at a press conference on Tuesday (June 2). “Manny was taken from me, he was murdered,” said Ellis’s mother Marcia Carter. “My heart hurt. I cried for two months and 10 days, every day, all day.” She added that his last words to her were, “Remember, I love you.” Ellis’s death was ruled a homicide and it’s reported that the officers involved in the incident that lead to Manuel Ellis’s death have been placed on administrative leave.
