Wow. I need to read court transcripts to understand the testimony of the medical witnesses.

Absolutely horrible way to die and it was what I consider excessive use of force (from DOJ mandate here in Qtown). I do know lack of knowledge of underlying medical conditions is not typically considered in police use of force cases, much to the displeasure of cops. I have mixed feelings.

If you aren’t aware, I developed two hours of Albuquerque Police Department CIT training as part of the Department of Justice vs. City of Albuquerque settlement agreement, giving cops useful instruction on how to best handle peers in mental health crisis calls. I began training APD two years prior to CASA and was the only peer team member until I recruited a small peer team about one year into the DOJ proceedings.

Legacy and a ramification I foresee is a sharp decline in law enforcement recruits. Who wants to do a job where you can be convicted of murder?

EDIT: I am somewhat qualified to comment on this event, and I waited until after the trial to share this. In a manic/psychotic crisis involving APD, I had one officer with his foot on my head and one with his knee on the small of my back to subdue me, so I could be handcuffed. I wasn’t violent. I was paranoid and terrified, and behaving erratic. So you might better understand how difficult it was to sit with APD to develop training. It’s because good people in APD – Matt Tinney, Nils Rosenbaum, and John Gonzales – that I learned to manage my PTSD symptoms to do something worthwhile for peers.