The loss of life of an unarmed 52-year-old man who died after an Alabama police officer kneeled on his neck was dominated a murder by a county coroner, in line with an official post-mortem reviewed by The Related Press. The discovering led legal professionals representing Phillip Reeder’s household on Monday to check his loss of life to that of George Floyd in 2020.
The report issued by the Jefferson County medical expert’s workplace concludes Reeder, of Irondale, Alabama, died final August of coronary heart failure “related to cocaine use and restraint throughout altercation.”
Officers within the Alabama suburb 10 miles from Birmingham have been dispatched to an area freeway simply after 5 a.m. on August 6, 2024, after one in all Reeder’s colleagues referred to as 911 to report a medical emergency, in line with Reeder’s spouse, Sandra Lee Reeder. Phillip Reeder, who owned a building firm, was driving house from a job in Memphis, Tennessee, she mentioned.
On the time, police mentioned Reeder was wandering out and in of site visitors after they approached him, in line with AL.com.
Physique digicam video of Reeder’s loss of life has not been launched publicly, however Sandra Lee Reeder and her attorneys mentioned they reviewed it final week.
“Phillip is heard clearly not as soon as, not twice, however 3 times ‘I am unable to breathe. I am unable to breathe. I am unable to breathe,'” Sandra Lee Reeder mentioned at a information convention Monday, CBS affiliate WIAT-TV reported.
Mike Wukela / AP
A 2023 state regulation that governs launch of police recordings says the Alabama Regulation Enforcement Company might select to not disclose the recording if it might have an effect on an energetic regulation enforcement investigation.
An e-mail searching for remark from the Irondale police chief was despatched Monday morning.
Sandra Lee Reeder mentioned that the physique digicam footage exhibits her husband working from police after they arrived. Police then shocked Reeder with a Taser, positioned him in handcuffs and laid him on his abdomen, she mentioned. One officer put his knee on Reeder’s neck for over three minutes, she mentioned.
“If I stand proper right here and depend to 120 seconds — loads can occur. That is three minutes,” the household’s lawyer Harry Daniels mentioned, in line with WIAT. “A knee was on the again of his neck whereas he was in handcuffs.”
The post-mortem mentioned Reed had a number of non-lethal wounds and bruising from the tried arrest by the police. Sandra Lee Reeder mentioned she may see he was bleeding from his face within the video.
Reeder was unresponsive when the officer rolled him over onto his again, in line with the coroner’s report. He was pronounced lifeless at an area hospital simply after 6:30 a.m.
Daniels, the lawyer for the Reeder household, in contrast the fatality to the loss of life of George Floyd in 2020, which prompted months of protests and widespread scrutiny over police techniques.
“This world was captivated and shocked about what occurred in 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In 2024, the very same factor occurred,” Daniels mentioned at a information convention exterior Irondale Metropolis Corridor on Monday.
Daniels mentioned that the one distinction between what occurred to Reeder and Floyd is race: Reeder was White and Floyd was Black. Reeder might have dedicated misdemeanor disorderly conduct by wandering into site visitors, however “it’s not warranted for a knee within the again – that’s lethal pressure,” he mentioned.
Reeder’s two sons mentioned that additionally they reviewed the physique digicam video of their father’s final moments this month after virtually a 12 months of asking the native police division and state company for extra data.
“What I’ve gone by these previous 11 months mustn’t occur to any 19-year-old,” Zachariah Phillip Reeder mentioned.
WIAT reported town of Irondale supplied a press release after the press convention, which reads partially:
The Metropolis of Irondale and the Irondale Police Division don’t agree with the characterization of occasions by Ms. Sandra Reeder concerning the loss of life of Phillip Reeder.
On 8/6/2024 at roughly 5:10 am, Irondale 911 acquired a number of calls concerning a white male topic (later recognized as Phillip Reeder) working out and in of site visitors on Freeway 78 close to Outdated Leeds Highway. Officers have been dispatched to the realm and positioned the topic who seemed to be underneath the affect and behaving erratically. Regardless of a number of instructions to conform, Mr. Reeder continued working within the street and shouting. As Mr. Reeder posed a hazard to himself and others, a Taser was deployed to deliver Mr. Reeder to the bottom and help officers with detaining Mr. Reeder. Even after deployment of the Taser, Mr. Reeder continued to withstand and wouldn’t observe instructions of the officers. As soon as handcuffed, Mr. Reeder continued to wrestle and resist for nearly two minutes.
Officers did maintain Mr. Reeder to the bottom utilizing their arms solely. No knee was positioned at the back of his neck, and no extreme pressure was used. Mr. Reeder stopped resisting, and the officers realized that he had stopped respiratory. They instantly turned him over, checked for a pulse and commenced CPR till the paramedics arrived.
