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Six Raleigh, North Carolina, police officers are on administrative leave and an investigation is ongoing following the death of a man in their custody last month, according to statements and newly released video from the Raleigh Police Department.
Darryl Tyree Williams, 32, died in a Raleigh hospital in the early hours of January 17 after a scuffle with police during which he was tased and arrested multiple times by police officers.
Raleigh Police Chief Estella Patterson said in a memo to City Manager Marchelle Adams-David several days after Williams’ death that the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation was conducting an independent criminal investigation and would present its findings to the Wake County District Attorney.
A Wake County judge on Friday authorized the release of footage from the officers’ body cameras, as well as area surveillance footage and patrol vehicle dash camera video involving the incident.
According to the memo and body camera footage, at approximately 1:55 a.m. officers were “actively patrolling” businesses in an area that police said had a history of criminal violations.
In the video, officers JT Thomas and CD Robinson are seen walking into a parking lot before approaching a vehicle and speaking to its occupants.
Robinson then walks through the parking lot to another vehicle, which is occupied by two people, including Williams, who was in the driver’s seat.
The officer then opens the passenger door and questions what the occupants are doing before asking Williams and the passenger to exit the vehicle. According to the memo, Robinson allegedly saw An open container of alcohol and marijuana in the car.
In the video, Williams and the unidentified passenger can be heard repeatedly asking Robinson why they were being removed from the car.
“What’s up?” Williams asked several times as Robinson placed her in front of his car in order to conduct a full body search.
“Put both your hands on the car. If you can’t listen to my instructions, I’m going to handcuff you,” Robinson says in the video. “I’m not trying to handcuff you.”
Until that time—about a minute after the encounter—Robinson had not told Williams why he was being searched.
Moments later, Robinson is seen removing a folded dollar bill from Williams’ side pocket, and indicates in the video that he detected a white powdery substance in the bill.
According to the memo, Robinson decided to arrest Williams for possession of a controlled substance based on his findings at the scene.
Williams is heard asking “why” and “what’s going on” as Robinson attempts to handcuff her. Another officer attempts to help Robinson and Thomas take Williams into custody, as they yell for him to “get on the ground” while another officer calls for back-up.
Robinson then deployed his Taser, who approached Williams as he attempted to flee, while the other officers continued to yell at him for putting his hands behind his back.
According to police, another Taser was deployed but did not make contact.
After a physical scuffle, Williams again tried to escape from the officers, but lost his balance and fell while attempting to cross the parking lot.
A taser was deployed again at this point, which police said did not make contact with Williams.
An officer is heard yelling at Williams to “f*** the king get on the ground” while Officer appeared to lift his body weight To prevent him from getting the man up.
Police said Robinson and Thomas deployed two separate Tasers in “drive stun mode”, both about 50 seconds apart as they approached Williams.
According to the memo, the Taser deployed by Thomas made contact with Williams’ side, while Robinson’s Taser made contact with the left side of Williams’ back.
The video showed Williams audibly and clearly appearing to be in distress as the officers continued to yell at her to stay on the ground with her hands behind her back.
An officer said, “Put your hands behind your back or you’ll get tired.”
At this point, Williams is heard saying he has a “heart problem” as he begs the officers to stop.
An officer counted down to three before deploying his Taser again.
Williams is then heard screaming and seen sobbing under the officers who were still yelling for him to put his hands behind his back.
At that point, the officers placed Williams in handcuffs as an “unexpected Taser activation” but did not make contact, according to police.
Robinson is heard telling other officers to pat down Williams as the officers attempt to turn him into a “recovery” position.
Another officer is heard telling Williams to “relax”.
The memo said police requested an EMS response at 2:02 p.m., which is in accordance with policy.
Moments later, an officer was heard asking if Williams was “still okay” and if he was “still breathing.”
One officer is heard saying that he could not feel Williams’ pulse as other officers attempted to wake him up.
“He’s breathing,” an officer is heard saying. “he is nice.”
The officers removed the taser probe from Williams’ body before asking again if he was breathing.
Officers did not detect a pulse and began performing CPR on Williams.
He then made another call to dispatch requesting an expedited EMS response at 2:06 p.m.
Raleigh Fire Department responders Then rushed to the scene and started performing CPR as per the video.
The video footage ends before the ambulance reaches the scene.
It is unclear whether police were able to locate the passenger of the vehicle, who appeared to flee the scene.
“Mr. Williams was transported by EMS to a local hospital, where he was later pronounced dead at 3:01 p.m. Mr. Williams’ cause of death, including toxicology results, is subject to an ongoing investigation,” according to the memo. Will be a part.
Police recovered two firearms, marijuana and suspected controlled substances from Williams’ vehicle, the memo reads.
Officers Robinson, Thomas, DL Aquino, JR Scott, DL Grande and BL Ramge have been placed on administrative leave, according to the memo.
In a statement to CNN, Don Blagrove, executive director of Emancipate NC, a legal advocacy group representing William’s family, said the family “demands immediate justice.”
“That’s what his mother wants the world to know. Justice, not just for Daryl Tyree Williams, but for all victims of state-sanctioned violence across the country,” Blagrove said.
“Now is the time for the city of Raleigh and for all of America to deal with the trauma and harm that policing causes for black, brown and marginalized communities,” Blagrove told CNN.
CNN has reached out to the Raleigh Police Department, the North Carolina Bureau of Investigation, and Wake County Medical Examiner’s Office on Saturday.
The Raleigh Police Protective Association, which represents the two officers involved in the incident, told CNN in a statement that its “prayers and thoughts are with the Williams family,” and It has reviewed the video for “Tragedy”.
“At this point we have not been able to determine any criminal actions or policy violations by the officers involved. We respect process and recognize that this incident is currently under investigation by SBI,” RPPA Vice President Rick Armstrong said on saturday statement.