Current:Home > InvestExpert defends security guards in death of man at Detroit-area mall a decade ago -WealthFocus Academy
Expert defends security guards in death of man at Detroit-area mall a decade ago
View
Date:2025-04-22 15:16:32
DETROIT (AP) — An expert in the use of force defended the tactics of security guards who restrained a man on the floor of a Detroit-area mall before he died, telling jurors Friday that their actions were reasonable.
Charles Key testified for the defense at the trial of three of the guards for involuntary manslaughter in the death of McKenzie Cochran at Northland Center more than 10 years ago.
Cochran, 25, who had an enlarged heart, repeatedly said, “I can’t breathe” while face down, according to witnesses. He died of asphyxiation.
“It doesn’t affect my overall opinion,” said Key, a consultant and former Baltimore police supervisor who trains police in the use of force. “If he’s talking it means he’s breathing. He may not be breathing well. Resisting aggressively — that also can’t be done without taking oxygen.”
The confrontation in 2014, recorded on video, began when a jewelry store owner called security to report that Cochran had said he wanted to kill somebody. He refused to leave the mall and was pepper-sprayed by a guard.
The conflict soon involved five guards, all trying to restrain Cochran while one attempted to handcuff him. It was later determined that he was not armed.
“This guy presented a serious threat from the information they had,” Key said. “All they’re trying to do is handcuff. They don’t use any other force other than the initial pepper spray.”
Cochran’s death was classified by the medical examiner as an accident in 2014, and the Oakland County prosecutor did not pursue charges, partly based on Key’s opinion about the confrontation. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel reversed course in 2021 and filed charges.
John Seiberling, Gaven King and Aaron Maree are accused of gross negligence. Another of the guards pleaded guilty last week in anticipation of only 90 days in jail. The guard who led the encounter with Cochran died in 2017.
___
Follow Ed White at https://twitter.com/edwritez
veryGood! (5176)
Related
- Small twin
- Lung Cancer in Nonsmokers? Study Identifies Air Pollution as a Trigger
- Inside Clean Energy: The Idea of 100 Percent Renewable Energy Is Once Again Having a Moment
- California Just Banned Gas-Powered Cars. Here’s Everything You Need to Know
- Why members of two of EPA's influential science advisory committees were let go
- Mike The Mover vs. The Furniture Police
- Twitter vs. Threads, and why influencers could be the ultimate winners
- Why inflation is losing its punch — and why things could get even better
- Backstage at New York's Jingle Ball with Jimmy Fallon, 'Queer Eye' and Meghan Trainor
- The Sweet Way Cardi B and Offset Are Celebrating Daughter Kulture's 5th Birthday
Ranking
- Trump issues order to ban transgender troops from serving openly in the military
- SAG-AFTRA agrees to contract extension with studios as negotiations continue
- Texas Oil and Gas Agency Investigating 5.4 Magnitude Earthquake in West Texas, the Largest in Three Decades
- They're illegal. So why is it so easy to buy the disposable vapes favored by teens?
- Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
- Post-Tucker Carlson, Fox News hopes Jesse Watters will bring back viewers
- States Have Proposals, But No Consensus, On Curbing Water Shortages In Colorado River Basin
- Sidestepping a New Climate Commitment, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Greenlights a Mammoth LNG Project in Louisiana
Recommendation
Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
Prime Day 2023 Deal: 30% Off the Celeb-Loved Laneige Lip Mask Used by Sydney Sweeney, Alix Earle & More
If you love film, you should be worried about what's going on at Turner Classic Movies
States Have Proposals, But No Consensus, On Curbing Water Shortages In Colorado River Basin
Finally, good retirement news! Southwest pilots' plan is a bright spot, experts say
Melanie Griffith Covers Up Antonio Banderas Tattoo With Tribute to Dakota Johnson and Family
Reneé Rapp Leaving The Sex Lives Of College Girls Amid Season 3
Britney Spears’ Upcoming Memoir Has a Release Date—And Its Sooner Than You Might Think