New York’s attorney general has announced no officers will be charged following an investigation into the death of Daniel Prude, a 41-year-old Black man who died after being restrained by Rochester police last year after having an apparent psychotic episode.
New York police officers handcuffed a naked Prude, put a hood over his head, then pressed his face into the pavement for two minutes on March 23, 2020. Prude died a week later when he was taken off life support. His death received no public attention until September 2020, when his family and their attorneys released police bodycam footage.
New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Tuesday that a grand jury determined that none of the officers who arrested Prude would face charges in connection with his death.
“The criminal justice system has demonstrated an unwillingness to hold law enforcement officers accountable in the unjustified killing of unarmed African-Americans,” said James, the New York Times reports. “What binds these cases is the tragic loss of life in circumstances in which the death could be avoided.”
