Colorado AG announces 32-count indictment against officers, paramedics over Elijah McClain's death

DENVER — Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser announced in a September 1 press conference that a grand jury returned a 32-count indictment against three Aurora police officers and two paramedics involved in the detainment and ensuing death of 23-year-old Elijah McClain two years ago.

“Our goal is to seek justice for Elijah McClain, for his family and friends, and for our state," Wesier said. "In so doing, we advance the rule of law and the commitment that everyone is accountable and equal under the law.”

All five defendants face charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide.

“Make no mistake we recognize this case will be difficult to prosecute; these types of cases always are," Weiser said.

You can watch the full press conference here.

Weiser’s announcement comes almost exactly two years after McClain’s death. On August 24, 2019, Aurora police officers received a call that night about a suspicious person walking down the street wearing a ski mask. Even though McClain was not suspected of a crime, the officers took him to the ground and put him in a now-banned carotid hold that limits blood flow to the brain, rendering a person unconscious.

When paramedics arrived on scene, they administered the sedative ketamine to McClain, though it was a much higher dose than was needed for a person McClain’s size. McClain had a heart attack on the way to the hospital. He was taken off life support August 30, 2019.

The officers and paramedics involved did not face charges thereafter. In a news release issued June 25, 2020, District Attorney Dave Young—who noted McClain’s death was “tragic and unnecessary”— said, “Based on the evidence and the law applicable at the time of Mr. McClain’s death, the prosecution cannot disprove the officers’ reasonable belief in the necessity to use force. Based on the facts and evidence of this investigation I cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officers involved in this incident were not justified in their actions based on what they knew at the time of this incident.”

The same day Young issued his statement, Governor Jared Polis appointed Weiser as a special prosecutor in the state’s investigation of McClain’s death to determine if the police officers and paramedics involved in the case should face criminal charges.

“Elijah McClain should be alive today,” Weiser said at the time. “His life mattered and his death was tragic. The pain, frustration, and anger that his family and many Coloradans are feeling from his death is understandable and justified. Whenever someone dies after an encounter with law enforcement, the community deserves a thorough investigation. Our investigation will be thorough, guided by the facts, and worthy of public trust and confidence in the criminal justice system.”

The Aurora Police Department’s force review board cleared the officers of wrongdoing after McClain’s death, but in February of 2021, investigators commissioned by City of Aurora concluded in a 157-page report that the investigation into McClain’s death “was flawed and failed to meaningfully develop a fulsome record.” However, the investigators added that “, it was not our charge to assess whether misconduct occurred; rather, our task was simply to report what we could learn from the record and make policy recommendations.”

This breaking news story will be updated.