Advertisement

Irvo Otieno died after officers pinned him to the ground for 12 minutes. Now 10 people are charged with murder

This undated photo provided by Ben Crump Law shows Irvo Otieno (Courtesy of Ben Crump Law via AP)
This undated photo provided by Ben Crump Law shows Irvo Otieno (Courtesy of Ben Crump Law via AP)

Irvo Otieno died after being handcuffed, shackled, and pinned to the ground for 12 minutes by a group of law enforcement officers at a mental hospital in Virginia.

Footage of the 6 March incident shows the 28-year-old Black man was “smothered him to death”, according to Ann Cabell Baskervill, Dinwiddie County Commonwealth’s Attorney.

In an emotional press conference on 16 March, Otieno’s mother described how her son was killed “like a dog”.

“What I saw today was heartbreaking, America. It was disturbing. It was traumatic. My son was tortured,” the 28-year-old’s mother Caroline Ouko said.

Now, ten people – seven deputies and three hospital workers – have been charged with his murder and the family is calling on the Department of Justice to take action.

Otieno’s death marks just the latest instance of a Black man dying during an interaction with law enforcement – coming months after Tyre Nichols died after being beaten by Memphis police officers and almost three years after the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Here’s what we know so far about the case:

Law enforcement interaction

Otieno was first detained by law enforcement back on 3 March, the Henrico County Police said in a press release.

Officers initially engaged with Otieno when they responded to a report that a burglary had taken place in the suburbs of Richmond, Virginia.

He was having a mental health crisis at the time and a neighbour had called police, concerned that he was collecting lawn lights from one of the yards in the area, said Mark Krudys, an attorney for Otieno’s family.

As officers arrived on the scene, the 28-year-old’s mother attempted to calm the situation, he said.

At the time, she supported Otieno being taken to hospital for treatment.

Due to his behaviour, officers – and the county’s crisis intervention team – put him under an emergency custody order and took him to a local hospital for evaluation.

This undated handout photo provided by Ben Crump Law shows Irvo Otieno (R), 28, who died on March 6, 2023, with his mother and brother (Ben Crump Law/AFP via Getty Imag)
This undated handout photo provided by Ben Crump Law shows Irvo Otieno (R), 28, who died on March 6, 2023, with his mother and brother (Ben Crump Law/AFP via Getty Imag)

At the hospital, police claim Otieno “became physically assaultive toward officers, who arrested him” and transported him to the Henrico County Jail West.

He was charged with three counts of assault on a law enforcement officer, disorderly conduct in a hospital and vandalism.

Day of Otieno’s death

Otieno spent three days in the custody of the jail before he was moved on 6 March to Central State Hospital, a state-run mental health facility.

The commonwealth attorney’s office said Otieno arrived at the facility at around 4pm to be admitted for treatment.

It is not clear what led authorities to move him there.

During the intake process, the attorney’s office said that Otieno became “combative” and was “physically restrained” by officers, before dying at the hospital “during the intake process”.

State police were called to the scene at 7.28pm to investigate his death.

The footage

Ann Cabell Baskervill, Dinwiddie County Commonwealth’s Attorney, spoke about surveillance footage of the incident in court on 15 March.

She said that the footage shows Otieno did not appear to be fighting the officers but was simply sitting in a chair before the officers then pulled him down to the floor.

She described how he was in handcuffs and leg irons as seven deputies pinned him down on the ground for 12 minutes.

The footage left her with no doubts that the 28-year-old was smothered to death by the officers.

“They smothered him to death,” she said. “He died of asphyxia due to being smothered.”

A portrait of Irvo Otieno, who died during an encouter with law enforcement in Petersburg (via REUTERS)
A portrait of Irvo Otieno, who died during an encouter with law enforcement in Petersburg (via REUTERS)

Ms Baskervill rejected a suggestion by a defence lawyer that two medical injections that Otieno had received may have contributed to his death.

The final cause of death hasn’t yet been made public by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

Otieno’s family and their attorneys – civil rights attorney Ben Crump and Mr Krudys – were also shown the footage this week.

At a press conference held by the family on Thursday, his mother said it showed “my son was treated like a dog, worse than a dog”.

Mr Crump said Otieno was pepper-sprayed by officers and was denied access to his medications at the facility.

It also showed the officers going into his cell, which was covered in excrement as Otieno was naked and in handcuffs, Mr Krudys said.

“You can see that they’re putting their back into it. Every part of his body is being pushed down with absolute brutality,” Mr Krudys said.

This undated handout photo provided by Ben Crump Law shows Irvo Otieno (R), 28, who died on March 6, 2023, with his mother and brother (Ben Crump Law/AFP via Getty Imag)
This undated handout photo provided by Ben Crump Law shows Irvo Otieno (R), 28, who died on March 6, 2023, with his mother and brother (Ben Crump Law/AFP via Getty Imag)

He added that the footage also revealed a lack of haste to aid Otieno after law enforcement realised “he was lifeless and not breathing”.

He was “almost lifeless” as he was carried out of the cell by his arms and legs “like an animal”, he said.

Mr Crump compared the Black man’s death to the murder of George Floyd in May 2020.

“It is truly shocking that nearly three years after the brutal killing of George Floyd by police, another family is grieving a loved one who allegedly died in nearly the exact same manner– being pinned down by police for 12 agonising minutes,” he said.

He described the video as a “commentary on how inhumane law enforcement officials treat people who are having a mental health crisis as criminals rather than treating them as people who are in need of help”.

“He, in the videos, [is] never confrontational with them. He is not posing a threat to them. He’s not violent or aggressive with them. You see in the video he is restrained with handcuffs, he has leg irons on, and you see in the majority of the video that he seems to be in between lifelessness and unconsciousness, but yet you see him being restrained so brutally with a knee on his neck,” he added.

“This was a mental health crisis. He wasn’t committing a crime,” he said.

The footage hasn’t yet been made public with Mr Crump calling on authorities to release it.

“How do we build trust unless we have transparency, and then we have accountability?” he asked.

The footage of the moments leading up to the death of Mr Otieno was released on 21 March.

It shows about ten sheriff’s deputies and medical employees holding down a shackled Mr Otieno for about 12 minutes before he stops moving.

Deputies restrain Irvo Otieno, who later died (Screenshot / Dinwiddie County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office)
Deputies restrain Irvo Otieno, who later died (Screenshot / Dinwiddie County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office)

The footage from hospital surveillance cameras has no sound. It was filmed on 6 March, the day Mr Otieno died.

It shows deputies from Henrico County dragging Mr Otieno into the admissions area of the hospital in handcuffs and leg irons, restraining him for about 12 minutes, before his still body is released at about 4.40pm.

Minutes pass before staff start to perform chest compressions and use a defibrillator on Mr Otieno. A medical technician covered his body with a white sheet at 5.48pm, The Washington Post notes.

Lawyers representing two of the defendants attempted to block the release of the footage on Monday, arguing that it sharing evidence or statements with the media would potentially influence the jury pool and possibly give defendants an unfair trial.

The office of Ms Basketvill said she would seek an indictment on Tuesday for all ten individuals charged. Court records revealed that a grand jury was set to meet on Tuesday.

As the video has no sound, it’s unclear what was said, but Mark Krudys, a civil rights attorney representing the family along with fellow lawyer Ben Crump, said it seemed as if one of the deputies laughed at one point.

Mr Otieno can be seen on the footage arriving at the hospital on 6 March, and a legal filing by Ms Baskervill includes 911 tapes of hospital staff calling for help, according to The Post.

Security footage from outside the building shows two SUVs arriving at 3.58pm, timestamps on the video state. Mr Otieno exits one of the vehicles at 4.16pm and he’s walked into the building by deputies.

Video from the hospital entrance shows deputies forcing Mr Otieno to move forward as he remains standing. He’s taken down a hallway and through an open door at 4.17pm. He’s next spotted on the footage at 4.19pm when enters the admissions area.

He’s dragged into the admissions room by four or five deputies. Two deputies hold him down where he sits on the floor, his back against a seat.

He seems to move at 4.28pm, prompting deputies and staff to react. A minimum of eight people get on top of him, holding down his legs and limiting the movement of his upper body.

They appear to lose control at 4.31pm and they roll him around on the floor, with nine or ten people holding on to him. Hospital staff are either monitoring the situation or helping to hold him down.

The restraint doesn’t ease up until 4.40pm when they roll him onto his side. He’s shirtless and seems to not be moving. A minute passes before a medical staffer lowers the top of his pants and administers an injection, but he remains still.

Efforts to resuscitate Mr Otieno then proceed.

“You’ll note that those resuscitation efforts were very slow in beginning,” Mr Krudys said on Monday, according to The Post.

He added that Mr Otieno’s mother “feels very strongly that the public should see what happened to her son”.

Douglas Ramseur represents hospital worker Wavie Jones, one of those charged.

“We are concerned that this response was filed by the prosecution with the intention of making the information available to the media and public after having received a motion by the defense seeking to prevent just such a disclosure,” he told The Post. “We are considering all our legal remedies.”

Ms Baskervill said she thinks the video should be made public and that the jurors can be screened for bias when the trial begins.

“There is no agenda here other than transparency,” she told the paper.

Charges

Ten people have now been charged with second-degree murder over Otieno’s death – seven Henrico County Sheriff’s Office deputies and three hospital workers.

The officers were first charged on 14 March before the hospital staff – Darian Blackwell, 23, from Petersburg, Wavie Jones, 34, from Chesterfield, and Sadarius Williams, 27, from North Dinwiddie – were charged on 16 March.

Caroline Ouko, mother of Irvo Otieno, holds a portrait of her son with attorney Ben Crump (AP)
Caroline Ouko, mother of Irvo Otieno, holds a portrait of her son with attorney Ben Crump (AP)

Two deputies have since been released on bond while the others are still in custody, with hearings scheduled for next week.

Lawyer Edward Nickel – who represents Deputy Bradley Disse, one of the two who were released – told the Associated Press that the officer had served “honourably” in the police department for two decades.

“He is looking forward to his opportunity to try this case and for the full truth to be shared in court and ultimately vindicated,” he said.

Ms Baskervill added that further charges and arrests are pending.

The commonwealth’s attorney for Henrico County, Shannon Taylor, said in a statement that her office is also investigating what took place at the jail that day.

The Henrico County Sheriff’s Office hasn’t commented beyond a statement put out on 14 March.

“As Henrico County sheriff and on behalf of our entire office, I extend my deepest sympathies and condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Irvo Otieno,” Sheriff Alisa Gregory said. “The events of March 6, at their core, represent a tragedy because Mr Otieno’s life was lost. This loss is felt by not only those close to him but our entire community.”

Caroline Ouko, mother of Irvo Otieno, holds a portrait of her son as she walks out of the Dinwiddie Courthouse with attorney Ben Crump (AP)
Caroline Ouko, mother of Irvo Otieno, holds a portrait of her son as she walks out of the Dinwiddie Courthouse with attorney Ben Crump (AP)

“The seven deputies who were transferring custody of Mr Otieno have been placed on administrative leave, pending the outcome of the Commonwealth’s cases,” she added. “As an office, we are cooperating fully with the investigation of the Virginia State Police. Separately, we are conducting our own independent review of this incident.”

“Public safety is what we stand for as a Sheriff’s Office. We will continue to maintain the highest professional standards in how we serve and protect those in our custody, the community at-large and our staff,” she concluded.

In a statement shared on Facebook on 14 March, the Henrico Fraternal Order of Police-Lodge 4 said “policing in America today is difficult, made even more so by the possibility of being criminally charged while performing their duty”.

“Today, seven Henrico County Sheriff’s Deputies were charged with murder in relation to the death of inmate Irvo Otieno,” they added. “The death of Mr. Otierno was tragic, and we express our condolences to his family. We also stand behind the seven accused deputies now charged with murder by the Dinwiddie County Commonwealth’s Attorney Ann Baskervill.”

“Little information regarding these charges has been released by the prosecutor. The deputies were not charged using warrants or indictments, but through a rarely-used process called an ‘information’ that allows for little outside scrutiny from impartial judges or magistrates,” they claimed. “From news reports it appears that the Virginia State Police have not completed their investigation of the death, and the Medical Examiner has not released a cause or manner of death. With these things in mind, and cognizant of every accused’s presumption of innocence, we support our Brothers and Sisters, and hope for a quick resolution that clears their names.”

Mental health crisis

Mr Otieno left Kenya as a child along with his family and grew up in the suburbs of the Virginia capital of Richmond.

His family said he was an aspiring musician and a former high school athlete – but he struggled with his mental health.

Speaking at Thursday’s press conference, Ms Ouko said there were long periods of time when you “wouldn’t even know something was wrong” but that at other occasions “he would go into some kind of distress and then you know he needs to see a doctor”.

“Mental illness should not be your ticket to death,” she added.

Now, she said that all she has of her son is his music.

“There is goodness in his music and that’s all I’m left with now — he’s gone,” she said, while clutching a photo of her son.

“I cannot be at his wedding. I’ll never see a grandchild ... because someone refused to help him. No one stood up to stop what was going on.”