Name Death Jonathan | ||
Jonathan Sanders was a 39-year-old Mississippi man who died while being restrained by police officer, Kevin Herrington, on July 8, 2015, in Stonewall, Mississippi. In January 2016, a grand jury declined to indict the officer, and in March 2016, a grand jury determined that Sanders choked after swallowing a bag of cocaine, and that the police had not used excessive force while restraining him. Doubting the findings of the grand jury, the NAACP released a statement asking for an outside investigation by the Department of Justice.
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Incident and inquiry
At the time of the incident, witnesses reported that the officer had used a racial slur during his encounter with Sanders, and that Sanders' breathing had been obstructed by officer Kevnin Herrington for as much as 30 minutes. Sanders died at the scene. At his funeral on July 18, 2015, 1,000 people attended. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was reported to have joined the investigation into Sanders' death. At the end of August 2015, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation was working on their report, and the FBI did not comment on the status of their inquiry.
Outcome of grand jury
On March 9, 2016, a Clarke County, Mississippi grand jury determined that Sanders died of "mechanical asphyxia" after swallowing a bag of cocaine, and that the police officer "was in the right to pursue Sanders based on the suspicion he was involved in drug activity". It furthermore determined there was no evidence showing a traumatic injury inflicted by the police officer. There was speculation over whether the police officer had used a racial slur during the incident. The jury found no evidence to support that. The jury concluded that Sanders "did not act in conformity with his normal character due to the influence of cocaine which was found in his system at the time of his death".