USA: White police officer sentenced to 14 months in prison for the death of young African-American man

A white police officer was sentenced this Friday to 14 months in prison in U.S for the death of an unarmed young African-American man who was strangled and injected with ketamine during a 2019 arrest.

Colorado judge Mark Werner sentenced the police officer Randy Roedema for third-degree assault and imposed four years of probation on the additional charge of criminally negligent homicide of Elijah McClainwhich shocked the country at the time.

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Judge Mark Warner said the court was “shocked by what appears to be genuine indifference to Elijah McClain’s suffering”.

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Sheneen McClain, the victim’s mother, welcomed the conviction. “Prison is the only justice Randy Roedema deserves”he said.

McClain was stopped on an Aurora city street by police, who claimed they were responding to a call about a “suspicious person” who wore a mask and walked “with a strange attitude”.

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One officer said McClain, who was unarmed, grabbed another officer’s gun, but there was no evidence to support the claim.

The young man’s family alleged that he went out to buy iced tea and often wore a mask to keep warm because he suffered from anemia.

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Paramedics Peter Cichuniec and Jeremy Cooper, who helped with the case, were also charged with criminally negligent homicide and were found guilty in December.

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McClain’s death occurred months before the Minneapolis murder George Floydwhich triggered a massive backlash in May 2020 U.S with protests against police brutality against minorities, especially black people.

Source: Elcomercio

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I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.