Four hotel workers were charged Tuesday with murder in the death of D’vontaye Mitchell, a Black man who died outside a Milwaukee hotel after being subdued by staff members in a scene that was recorded on video and caused a public outcry.
Mr. Mitchell’s family says he was having a mental health crisis when hotel staff members tried to subdue him after he ran through the lobby and into the women’s restroom. An autopsy showed that asphyxiation, cocaine and methamphetamine had contributed to his death.
The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office announced the charge of felony murder against four people: Todd Alan Erickson, 60; Brandon Ladaniel Turner, 35; Devin W. Johnson-Carson, 23; and Herbert T. Williamson, 52. The charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years and nine months.
Prosecutors said arrest warrants had been issued for the men, though it was unclear if they had been arrested by late Tuesday.
Mr. Erickson and Mr. Turner worked as security guards at the Hyatt Hotel in Milwaukee, prosecutors said. Mr. Williamson worked as a bell attendant, and Mr. Johnson-Carson worked at the front desk. All four were fired after Mr. Mitchell’s death.
The charges filed in court Tuesday came after an autopsy report released on Friday ruled the death a homicide and found that Mr. Mitchell, 43, had died from a combination of “restraint asphyxia and toxic effects of cocaine and methamphetamine” as he was held down by hotel workers in a prone position on June 30. The report also noted that Mr. Mitchell had been obese and had hypertensive cardiovascular disease.
Last month, the district attorney’s office said it was investigating the death as a homicide. The Milwaukee Police Department had also recommended murder charges against four unnamed people last month to the district attorney.
In a statement issued Tuesday, Ben Crump, a lawyer who is representing Mr. Mitchell’s family, said the charges were a “significant step” toward justice.
“The evidence, including security footage and witness statements, paints a disturbing picture of a man in distress who was met with excessive and lethal force,” Mr. Crump said in a statement.
Video of the episode that circulated online appeared to show four hotel workers holding Mr. Mitchell to the ground as he could be heard calling for help.
The criminal complaint, filed Tuesday, said Mr. Mitchell could be heard yelling “Please!” and noted that he had made noises consistent with someone out of breath.
Security camera footage showed that Mr. Mitchell ran into the lobby of the Hyatt Regency Milwaukee on June 30 in what appeared to be a “frantic manner,” the criminal complaint said.
Mr. Mitchell then ran into the lobby’s gift shop before darting out of the shop and down the hallway into the women’s restroom.
Two unidentified women who were inside the restroom said Mitchell attempted to close the bathroom door, the complaint said.
Surveillance footage showed Mr. Turner, an off-duty security guard, pulling Mr. Mitchell out of the restroom and escorting him to the lobby, according to the complaint.
Mr. Mitchell then grabbed at the guard’s waistband before Mr. Turner backed away, punched Mr. Mitchell and knocked him down, the complaint said.
Surveillance footage showed that an unidentified hotel guest helped Mr. Turner drag Mr. Mitchell outside through the sliding lobby doors, where an unidentified hotel employee struck Mr. Mitchell’s legs twice with a broom, knocking him to the ground. Mr. Turner is shown on the video punching Mr. Mitchell several times, according to the complaint.
As Mr. Mitchell tried to re-enter the hotel, Mr. Johnson-Carson, the front desk worker, and Mr. Erickson, the on-duty security guard, joined Mr. Turner in tackling Mr. Mitchell to the ground.
Mr. Turner and Mr. Johnson-Carson can be seen on video punching Mr. Mitchell, while Mr. Erickson kicks him in the torso, the complaint said.
The four men forced Mr. Mitchell onto his stomach and held him down for eight to nine minutes before the police arrived.
Mr. Erickson, at one point, struck Mr. Mitchell with a baton, the complaint said.
The autopsy report said Mr. Mitchell had been unresponsive as the workers waited for the police.
When they arrived, the police administered Narcan, which is used to treat drug overdoses, and performed CPR on Mr. Mitchell until medics arrived and ultimately pronounced him dead on the scene.
Mr. Mitchell was found with bruises on his left knee, a hand and his lower back, the autopsy report said.
He had a T-shirt and a sweater pulled over his head, and there appeared to be dried blood on his forehead when he was found. He had a metal rod and a pipe, both with burn marks, the autopsy report said.
The police interviewed Mr. Mitchell’s mother, Brenda Giles, who said he was homeless and had been recently admitted to a rehab clinic for drug use.
At least one of the charged men, Mr. Johnson-Carson, told investigators the force used on Mr. Mitchell had been excessive.
Mr. Johnson-Carson told investigators that he had reluctantly complied when Mr. Erickson ordered him to reapply pressure on Mr. Mitchell even though he had recognized that it was unnecessary.
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