strongernow
07-22-2004, 07:38 AM
Strangled: Teen's death stirs changes for Decatur police
By TASGOLA KARLA BRUNER
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/11/04
The suicide of an 18-year-old while he was in Decatur police custody has prompted the department to change some holding cell procedures.
Jamell McKinnon strangled himself with a lanyard in a holding cell at the police station May 15 following his arrest on drug possession charges. The death was captured on a video camera in the cell, but police say department personnel were not monitoring the video as required. The DeKalb County medical examiner's office ruled the death a strangulation suicide.
New procedures will require someone to personally watch detainees in custody and to remove any loose belongings. Limits will be placed on the length of time detainees are kept in a holding cell before transfer to the DeKalb County Jail.
The expanded and new directives also "restate for clarification" that people who are arrested be cuffed with their hands behind them — and not in front, said Decatur Police Chief Leander Robinson.
At Robinson's request, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is investigating. The agency will determine if there was possible criminal wrongdoing in McKinnon's death, according to spokesman John Bankhead.
Robinson said the results of his department's administrative investigation were turned over Thursday to the Decatur city attorney and city manager. Robinson declined to say why department personnel were not monitoring the video, citing the continuing investigation.
DeKalb Chief Medical Examiner Gerald Gowitt, who viewed the tape of McKinnon's death, wrote in his autopsy report: "[McKinnon] was seen to remove a lanyard (from his person) and place this ligature around his neck. At one point he attempted to tie it to the door of the cell, and when this failed it appeared that he cinched it tightly around his neck." The new and expanded police procedures come as McKinnon's family tries to understand why he would have killed himself and why police didn't stop him.
"It's absurd that the police department is filming a teenager kill himself inside their own precinct," said Jesse Williams, McKinnon's father, who lives in New York. "The only thing that would have stopped Jamell from dying is someone paying attention to that tape."
Robinson said the department is looking into possibly hiring a sworn officer to sit outside the holding cells to monitor them.
He said there is currently no deadline for people detained in holding cells to be moved to the DeKalb County Jail. As part of the changes to the holding cell procedures, the department will implement a deadline, possibly four hours, Robinson said.
McKinnon died following his arrest on charges of drug possession with intent to distribute. He was placed in one of two holding cells at the police station. About an hour later, according to the police report, McKinnon was found on the floor with blood coming out of his nose and mouth.
Stephen Bright, director of the Southern Center for Human Rights, reviewed a copy of the autopsy and said that "at best, someone was incredibly negligent" because belongings were not removed from McKinnon that he could use against himself or police.
The center is a public interest legal project based in Atlanta that provides legal representation to persons facing the death penalty and to inmates challenging unconstitutional conditions in prisons and jails throughout the South.
Robinson, who spent more than 30 years with the Atlanta Police Department and has been chief of the Decatur police for a year, said McKinnon gave no indication he was suicidal.
He also said there was no indication that the arresting officer, Kenyatta Ashley, violated department policy.
"It's really tragic this occurred," Robinson said.
As for the doubts McKinnon's family has that the death was a suicide, Robinson said: "There's always going to be suspicion about the police. Our greatest ally is a track record of telling the truth and being as straightforward as we can."
By TASGOLA KARLA BRUNER
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/11/04
The suicide of an 18-year-old while he was in Decatur police custody has prompted the department to change some holding cell procedures.
Jamell McKinnon strangled himself with a lanyard in a holding cell at the police station May 15 following his arrest on drug possession charges. The death was captured on a video camera in the cell, but police say department personnel were not monitoring the video as required. The DeKalb County medical examiner's office ruled the death a strangulation suicide.
New procedures will require someone to personally watch detainees in custody and to remove any loose belongings. Limits will be placed on the length of time detainees are kept in a holding cell before transfer to the DeKalb County Jail.
The expanded and new directives also "restate for clarification" that people who are arrested be cuffed with their hands behind them — and not in front, said Decatur Police Chief Leander Robinson.
At Robinson's request, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation is investigating. The agency will determine if there was possible criminal wrongdoing in McKinnon's death, according to spokesman John Bankhead.
Robinson said the results of his department's administrative investigation were turned over Thursday to the Decatur city attorney and city manager. Robinson declined to say why department personnel were not monitoring the video, citing the continuing investigation.
DeKalb Chief Medical Examiner Gerald Gowitt, who viewed the tape of McKinnon's death, wrote in his autopsy report: "[McKinnon] was seen to remove a lanyard (from his person) and place this ligature around his neck. At one point he attempted to tie it to the door of the cell, and when this failed it appeared that he cinched it tightly around his neck." The new and expanded police procedures come as McKinnon's family tries to understand why he would have killed himself and why police didn't stop him.
"It's absurd that the police department is filming a teenager kill himself inside their own precinct," said Jesse Williams, McKinnon's father, who lives in New York. "The only thing that would have stopped Jamell from dying is someone paying attention to that tape."
Robinson said the department is looking into possibly hiring a sworn officer to sit outside the holding cells to monitor them.
He said there is currently no deadline for people detained in holding cells to be moved to the DeKalb County Jail. As part of the changes to the holding cell procedures, the department will implement a deadline, possibly four hours, Robinson said.
McKinnon died following his arrest on charges of drug possession with intent to distribute. He was placed in one of two holding cells at the police station. About an hour later, according to the police report, McKinnon was found on the floor with blood coming out of his nose and mouth.
Stephen Bright, director of the Southern Center for Human Rights, reviewed a copy of the autopsy and said that "at best, someone was incredibly negligent" because belongings were not removed from McKinnon that he could use against himself or police.
The center is a public interest legal project based in Atlanta that provides legal representation to persons facing the death penalty and to inmates challenging unconstitutional conditions in prisons and jails throughout the South.
Robinson, who spent more than 30 years with the Atlanta Police Department and has been chief of the Decatur police for a year, said McKinnon gave no indication he was suicidal.
He also said there was no indication that the arresting officer, Kenyatta Ashley, violated department policy.
"It's really tragic this occurred," Robinson said.
As for the doubts McKinnon's family has that the death was a suicide, Robinson said: "There's always going to be suspicion about the police. Our greatest ally is a track record of telling the truth and being as straightforward as we can."