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DINWIDDIENationally renowned civil rights leader Rev. Al Sharpton will deliver a speech at Irvo Otieno's memorial in a mental health tragedy that has reached national stage.

On March 6, Otieno died of apparent suffocation while in custody at Dinwiddie's mental health hospital. Video footage shows seven Henrico sheriff's deputies and three Central State employees holding him down at different points while he was shackled on his hands and feet for approximately 12 minutes. One sheriff had his knee on Otieno's neck.

Otieno is so completely covered by deputies and staff that only glimpses of him can be seen in the first 20 minutes of the video: the top of his head for a moment, a twitching foot.

More:Dinwiddie prosecutor releases video showing officers, staff covering Otieno; grand jury indicts 10 suspects

The death of Otieno, 28, comes amidst national reckoning after George Floyd's death, who also died of suffocation when police pinned him down for 17 minutes. One officer had his knee on his neck, not allowing him to breathe after multiple objections.

"Did you not understand putting a knee on somebody's neck who's handcuffed after George Floyd is not a good thing, that it could lead to someone's death?" said attorney Ben Crump who represented Breonna Taylor and Floyd. He is also representing Otieno's family. "You all had to know you were killing him."

The suspects indicted are deputies Jermaine Lavar Branch, 45; Bradley Thomas Disse, 43; Randy Joseph Boyer, 57; Dwayne Alan Bramble, 37; Tabitha Rene Levere, 50; Brandon Edward Rodgers, 48; and Kalyell Dajour Sanders, 30; and hospital employees Darian M. Blackwell, 23, of Petersburg, Wavie L. Jones, 34, of Chesterfield, and Sadarius D. Williams, 27, of North Dinwiddie.

Dinwiddie County prosecutor Ann Cabell Baskervill has charged the seven sheriffs deputies as well as three employees of the hospital with second-degree murder.

More:Why was Irvo Otieno treated with such brutality? Family still searching for answers.

Otieno was born in Kenya and moved to the U.S. when he was four years old. He was an aspiring hip hop artist who could write a song in minutes. He was working on producing a record label under the name "Youngvo." His mom referred to him as thepeacemaker in the family,"a humble man whom others looked to for help, a leader that cared that people were treated right.

He spent a majority of his life in Virginia and attended college in California, where problems with his mental health first started to surface, according to the Richmond Times Dispatch. Though he battled with mental illness, his mom said that even in mental distress, he did not have a record of violence.

"Mental illness should not be your ticket to death. That was a chance to rescue him. There was a chance to stop what was going on. And I don't understand how all systems failed him," his mother Caroline Ouko said.

The date and time of his funeral has not yet been released.

More:Mother of Irvo Otieno 'happy' with indictments of deputies, hospital staff charged in his death

More:Dinwiddie judge denies defense motion for gag order in Irvo Otieno murder case

More:GoFundMe account for Central State patient's family sets $100K for funeral, other expenses

Joyce Chu, an award-winning investigative journalist,is the Social Justice Watchdog Reporter for TheProgress Index. Contact her with comments, concerns, or story-tips atJchu1@gannett.com or on Twitter @joyce_speaks.

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Civil rights leader Al Sharpton to deliver eulogy for Irvo Otieno who ... - Progress Index

By Citizen Staff | on March 22, 2023

Al Sharpton

Rev. Al Sharpton, a civil rights activist, has been invited by the family of Irvo Otieno to eulogize Otieno.

Sharptons National Action Network made the announcement Tuesday afternoon.

Otieno, 28 of Henrico, died March 6 at Central State Hospital in Dinwiddie County while being restrained by a group of Henrico Sheriffs deputies. Dinwiddie County Commonwealths Attorney Ann C. Baskervill said in court that Otieno died by asphyxiation, but defense attorneys have challenged that assertion.

Seven deputies and three former employees of the hospital now face second-degree murder charges in Otienos death.

Video of Otienos final moments was released Monday. He had been taken from the Henrico jail to the hospital for evaluation after a mental health episode.

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Sharpton invited to give Otieno's eulogy - The Henrico Citizen - Henrico Citizen

By Denise Lavoie and Sarah RankinAssociated Press

RICHMOND, Va. As a video was released publicly this week showing sheriffs deputies and employees of a Virginia mental hospital pinning Irvo Otieno to the floor, attorneys for several of the defendants charged with second-degree murder in his death began to weigh in to defend their clients.

During bond hearings and through statements, lawyers sought to distinguish their clients from the mass of bodies involved in holding Otieno to the floor for over 10 minutes.

One said in court that his client only worked to secure leg irons on Otieno, while another said his client put his body weight on the man for just a short period of time and then tried to position Otieno on his side so he would not have trouble breathing.

Some defense attorneys also said their clients were only trying to restrain Otieno and there was no evidence of an intent to kill the 28-year-old Black man as deputies sought to have him admitted to Central State Hospital on March 6.

At no time did he realize that Mr. Otieno ... was in any danger whatsoever, said attorney Caleb Kershner, who represents one of the seven Henrico County deputies who have been charged, along with three hospital employees.

But Otienos family and their lawyers, including prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump, pushed back against any attempt to minimize the role they say individuals in the crowded room played in Otienos death.

During a press conference Tuesday evening, family attorney Mark Krudys quoted some of the language used by defense counsel during bond hearings earlier that day, including a description of Otieno as being in obvious need of medical attention.

Despite that they piled on him, Krudys said. Ten individuals.

Krudys and Crump said the defense attorneys were offering excuses for what the video showed while trying to cast Otieno, who was shackled and handcuffed, as combative.

They are trying to say ... Well, he was struggling. Well, he was still resisting.' No he wasnt. He was trying to breathe, Crump said at the news conference, which was punctuated by sobs from Otienos mother.

Otieno's family has said he was brutally mistreated not only at the hospital where he died but also while in law enforcement custody beforehand.

Otieno, whose family said he had long-running mental health struggles, was initially taken to a Richmond-area hospital by police for psychiatric care March 3. But after authorities said he became combative, he was criminally charged and transferred to the jail. His family says he was denied access to needed medication during his time there.

News outlets obtained video this week of the events that preceded Otieno's death at the state mental hospital in Dinwiddie County. The prosecutor had previously shown the footage, for which there is no audio, to Otieno's relatives and attorneys.

According to timestamps, an SUV carrying Otieno arrived at the hospital just before 4 p.m. March 6.

In court, defense attorneys said that before he arrived there he was resistant. One said it took approximately 12 officers to get Otieno out of his cell at the jail.

Video from the hospital shows that nearly 20 minutes after the SUV's arrival, officers remove Otieno from the vehicle and escort him inside. He appears to be upright but hunched over.

By 4:19., a different camera shows him being forcibly led into a room with tables and chairs. He is hauled toward a seat and eventually slumps to the floor, first seated and then lying flat.

An increasing number of people become involved in holding Otieno down. At times his shirtless body is obscured by the sheer number of bodies or by someone standing front of the camera.

Steve Benjamin, a Richmond criminal defense attorney who serves as special counsel to the Virginia Senate Judiciary Committee and is not involved with the case, said the video by itself is not enough to determine the criminal culpability of the deputies or hospital workers.

We don't know if those who were observing were saying to the deputies, Get off him, he cant breathe.' We don't know if he was saying he couldn't breathe or if he was threatening violence to those who were trying to restrain him. We simply have no idea," Benjamin said.

Our reaction to that video is human and natural, he said, but it doesn't go very far in answering the question of, was there a criminal offense committed here?

In Virginia case law, second-degree murder is generally defined as the malicious killing of another, meaning the conduct must be so likely to cause death or serious injury that it demonstrates utter and callous disregard for life.

The first charges in the case were announced last week against the deputies, followed by the hospital workers two days later. Dinwiddie Commonwealth's Attorney Ann Cabell Baskervill said in an email Wednesday that while she doesn't have additional charges in the pipeline, the state police investigation remains ongoing.

A separate investigation into the events preceding Otienos death at both the hospital and the jail is also ongoing, according to Henrico County Commonwealths Attorney Shannon Taylor.

All 10 defendants have been granted bond and have pre-trial hearings set for late April or May.

Final autopsy findings have not been released. Baskervill has said in court that Otieno died of asphyxiation, though some defense attorneys have raised the possibility that injections administered at the hospital may have played a role.

The Rev. Al Sharpton has been asked to deliver the eulogy at Otieno's funeral, his National Action Network said Wednesday. Details have not been announced.

EARLIER:Video released after 7 Va. deputies charged with second-degree murder over in-custody death

Excerpt from:
Attorneys for Va. deputies charged with murder over in-custody ... - Police News

CHICAGO The Rev. Al Sharpton is coming here Sunday to lead whats expected to be a massive get-out-the-vote rally less than 10 days before a heated mayors election, making him the latest high-profile figure to get involved in a contest thats increasingly becoming nationalized.

Sharpton told NBC News he was not endorsing a candidate in the race where crime has become the central issue in a city facing a public safety crisis.

The two candidates competing in the April 4 runoff are Chicago Teachers Union-backed Brandon Johnson and former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas.

Im doing a GOTV rally on Sunday in Chicago. Both candidates are invited, said Sharpton, who is also an MSNBC host. Sharpton said some thought Vallas wouldnt come to the rally, which is being held at New Mount Pilgrim Baptist Church.

He should come. Im interested in turnout, Sharpton said of Vallas.

A spokesperson for Vallas said the campaign wasnt aware of any invitation involving a Sharpton event. A member of Johnsons campaign team indicated Johnson would attend.

While Sharpton has said hes not endorsing in the race, his mere presence at a church where the pastor has backed Johnson is tantamount to an endorsement and rally for Johnson.

We are very excited to have the reverend come to Chicago to help boost GOTV efforts, said Bill Neidhardt, a Johnson campaign adviser. We have had many insightful and inspirational conversations with the reverend in the last few months.

Johnson has the backing of Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. No members of Congress have endorsed Vallas.

Natasha Korecki is a senior national political reporter for NBC News.

Jonathan Allen contributed.

More here:
Al Sharpton to lead GOTV rally ahead of Chicago mayoral election - NBC News

March 23, 1948, in The Star: Three persons were treated at Anniston Memorial Hospital and one was hospitalized following a freak tornado that dipped down onto Coldwater last night around 7:20. Arnold Rollins suffered a fractured vertebrae when the home of W. B. Mason was picked up, turned around and set down in the nearby garden. The Rollinses had gone to the Masons home at the approach of the storm. Four of the 12 in the house at that time were injured.

March 23, 1998, in The Star: The Rev. Al Sharpton was in Anniston last night speaking at Mount Olive Baptist Church at an observance service marking the Rev. John S. Nettles 30th year as pastor of the south Anniston congregation. I dont know anyone who has served more unselfishly and who has served more consistently than your pastor and our leader, the Rev. John Nettles, Sharpton said. Also this date: With two new motels and another on the way, the lodging construction boom that has swept the country is making noise in Oxford. The Jameson Inn and Wingate Inn, with 120 rooms between them, are the two newest entrants, and soon to join them off Interstate 20s exit 188 is the Sleep Inn.

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Look Back ... to a tornado in Coldwater, 1948 | Features ... - The Anniston Star