Seven deputies were charged with the second-degree murder of Irvo Otieno, who died on March 6.
What happened to Irvo Otieno?
According to reports from Dinwiddie County Commonwealth’s Attorney Ann Cabell Baskerville, on March 6, Irvo Otieno, who was 28 years old, died during an intake process while being transferred from Henrico County Jail.
Otieno was taken into custody on March 3 at Parham’s Medical Hospital after allegedly assaulting Henrico County police officers. The police had responded to a possible hospital burglary, so he was arrested on suspicion.
He turned “physically assaultive” towards the officers who were arresting him when he was at the hospital. After being arrested, he was taken to a local jail on the grounds of an emergency custody order.
While being transferred, on March 6, he was in handcuffs and leg irons and was held on the ground for 12 minutes by all seven deputies.
This ugly scene was caught on video, which was 12 minutes long. The whole video was upsetting and showed how cruelly and deliberately he was being treated.
Irvo Otieno’s cause of death.
According to the video that has still not been released, he died of Asphyxia due to being smothered to death by all seven deputy officers, including the defendant, who was on top of him. Apart from it, he was also struck multiple times.
Irvo Otieno, restricted by handcuffs and a leg iron, was unable to defend himself and was thus forced to remain in the same position, which caused him to give up.
It is also believed that Otieno received 2 injections during or after the altercation, which might have been the cause leading to his death. Though, it is said that the injection did not enter his system since his heart stopped before that.
At 3:58, he was taken to the central state hospital to admit him due to his unresponsiveness, where he died.
The 7 deputies were charged with the murder.
Kaiyell Dajour Sanders, 30, Brandon Edward Rodgers, 48, Tabitha Renee Levere, 50, Bradley Thomas Disse, 43, Jermaine Lavar Branch, 45, Dwayne Alan Bramble, 37, and Randy Joseph Boyer, 57, were the seven deputies charged with the second-degree murder of Irvo Otieno.
All of them are scheduled to appear before the court for trial with the grand jury on March 21.
This case shows how much law enforcement uses force, which has been a sign of scrutiny by many people worldwide, especially relating to violence against black people.
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