By Megan Sayles
AFRO Staff Writer
msayles@afro.com
A statewide audit of the Maryland Office of the Chief of Medical Examiner (OCME) has revealed that dozens of deaths involving police restraints were wrongly classified— marked as “undetermined,” “accidental” or “natural”— when they should have been ruled homicides.
The audit, spearheaded by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), reviewed 87 cases from 2003 to 2019, in which people died during or closely after law enforcement restraint. In more than half, independent forensic pathologists disputed the OCME’s official determination of the manner of death. In 36 cases, they unanimously concluded that the death should have been labeled a homicide.
One of those deaths was Tyrone West, a 44-year-old, unarmed Black man who died in 2013 after a violent encounter with police officers from both the Baltimore Police Department and Morgan State University. For more than a decade, his family has called for justice. Now, they say the audit report has confirmed their long-standing claims.
“Finally, what I’ve been trying to tell them for over a decade is out,” said Tawanda Jones, West’s younger sister. “When I found out, I cried so loud. My whole body went numb and into shock.”
West was stopped by police officers in Northeast Baltimore on July 18, 2013 for a minor traffic violation. Two officers on the scene that day, Nicholas Chapman and Jorge Bernardez-Ruiz, pulled West out of the vehicle by his dreadlocks.
They said they suspected West had drugs in his socks. As West tried to run away, more officers responded to the scene. They pepper-sprayed him, kicked him and hit him with batons, eventually pinning him to the ground.
Shortly after, David Fowler, former chief medical examiner for the state, determined that West died from a heart condition that was worsened by dehydration, heat and the struggle with police. An independent autopsy commissioned by West’s family in 2016 instead deemed asphyxiation while being restrained as his cause of death.
Since her brother’s death, Jones has led weekly protests known as “West Wednesdays” to seek redress for West and other victims of police brutality.
While the audit’s findings do not automatically trigger criminal charges or official reclassifications of deaths, including West’s, Jones is calling for officers to be brought to justice.
“Moving forward, I want full accountability from the city in holding these killer cops responsible for what they did to my brother,” said Jones. “I want them prosecuted and charged to the fullest extent of the law.”
The audit of the OCME was prompted following Fowler’s testimony in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the Minneapolis police officer who killed George Floyd during a police restraint.
Floyd, an unarmed Black man, died on May 25, 2020 after Chauvin knelt on his neck for over nine minutes during an arrest, despite Floyd’s repeated protests that he couldn’t breathe. He ultimately became unresponsive and died from cardiopulmonary arrest.
Fowler testified that Floyd’s death was not a homicide and, instead, due to undetermined causes. He attributed it to a combination of factors, including heart disease, drug use and carbon monoxide exposure. Still, the jury found Chauvin guilty of murdering Floyd.
After the ruling, 450 medical experts co-signed a letter to then-Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh and others. They denounced Fowler’s testimony as biased and requested an independent review of all deaths in custody during Fowler’s tenure.
The audit found that deaths involving African Americans and deaths involving police restraint were significantly less likely to be declared a homicide. Forensic reviewers also discovered lapses in autopsy documentation, including missing photographs and incomplete incident reports.
During a May 15 press conference, Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said the audit’s findings have deep implications for the state’s justice system.
“They speak to systemic issues rather than individual conduct,” said Brown. “We recognize both the gravity of these findings for affected families and communities and the importance of supporting law enforcement officers who navigate difficult situations while upholding their duty to protect Marylanders.”
He also made clear that a homicide classification only means a person died because of another person’s actions.
“It does not mean those actions rose to the level of criminal liability or culpability for those involved in the decedent’s death. It does not mean the officers involved can or should be prosecuted,” said Brown. “But, it does mean the Office of the Attorney General will do whatever is necessary to help the families of those who have lost loved ones get the answers and justice they deserve.”
The OAG has launched an OCME audit hotline to support affected families. Individuals can email OCMEAuditHotline@oag.state.md.us or call 833-282-0961 if they believe their loved one’s case was impacted by the audit.
