Colorado police officers fired after photos mocking death of Black man surface

By Keith Coffman

 

Aurora Police Department officers Erica Marrero, Jaron Jones and Kyle Dittrich reenact a chokehold near a memorial to Elijah McClain, in Aurora, Colorado, U.S. October 2019. Aurora Police Department/Handout via REUTERS.

 

DENVER (Reuters) - Three Colorado police officers were fired and a fourth resigned after they shared photographs they took of themselves re-enacting a chokehold officers used to subdue a Black man who later died, authorities said on Friday.

 

Vanessa Wilson, interim chief of police in the Denver suburb of Aurora, called the officers' actions surrounding the death of Elijah McClain, who was unarmed, "reprehensible."

 

"I am disgusted to my core," Wilson said at a news conference announcing the firings.

 

The officers who were terminated were named as Jason Rosenblatt, Erica Marrero and Kyle Dittrich. The fourth officer, Jaron Jones, resigned on Tuesday.

 

One photo depicts Dittrich and Jones recreating a carotid neck hold, while a grinning Marrero stands nearby. The pictures, which were released on Friday by authorities, were taken near the site where the fatal struggle took place.

 

Rosenblatt, who was among the officers who subdued McClain, was fired for responding "HaHa" after receiving the photo, Wilson said.

 

The McClain family attorney, Mari Newman, said police not only killed an innocent man but felt empowered to make a "mockery" of the incident by re-enacting it.

 

McClain, 23, was walking along a street in Aurora in August 2019 when he was approached by three officers on reports of a man acting suspiciously, although he had not committed any crimes.

 

During the confrontation, McClain said he could not breathe, according to audio recordings released by police.

 

The officers subdued McClain with the carotid chokehold, and paramedics later injected him with the sedative ketamine. He then went into cardiac arrest and was taken off life support days later.

 

A local prosecutor declined to file charges against the officers or paramedics, citing an autopsy that listed the cause of death as undetermined.

 

Colorado Governor Jared Polis has appointed a special prosecutor to review the case, and this week the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice said they are investigating whether McClain's civil rights were violated.

 

(Reporting by Keith Coffman; Editing by Daniel Wallis)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-07-04

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

Incredibly stupid, disrespectful, crass behaviour from the officers.

 

Great news for any BLM supporters in Denver that need a new 80" flatscreen TV though.

1 hour ago, rooster59 said:

Rosenblatt, who was among the officers who subdued McClain, was fired for responding "HaHa" after receiving the photo, Wilson said.

pretty stupid of the three officers to take the photos in uniform and then post them.  but the fourth?

 

The interim chief confirmed Rosenblatt had no part in the taking or distribution of the photos, but they were sent to him, and he replied with an inappropriate response.

 

https://denver.cbslocal.com/2020/07/03/3-aurora-police-officers-fired-over-elijah-mcclain-photo-scandal/

 

 

lucky they don't have some sort of guarantee of ability to speak freely in public, otherwise rosenblatt should soon be collecting a yuuuuge sum of money.

 

"your honor, the defendant said 'haha'!"

12 minutes ago, ChouDoufu said:

pretty stupid of the three officers to take the photos in uniform and then post them.  but the fourth?

 

The interim chief confirmed Rosenblatt had no part in the taking or distribution of the photos, but they were sent to him, and he replied with an inappropriate response.

 

https://denver.cbslocal.com/2020/07/03/3-aurora-police-officers-fired-over-elijah-mcclain-photo-scandal/

 

 

lucky they don't have some sort of guarantee of ability to speak freely in public, otherwise rosenblatt should soon be collecting a yuuuuge sum of money.

 

"your honor, the defendant said 'haha'!"

The guy who responded “Ha ha” was involved in the incident that lead to the death of dead man the other officers mocked. 
 

He’s got much worse coming his way I suspect. 
 

 

“Colorado Governor Jared Polis has appointed a special prosecutor to review the case, and this week the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice said they are investigating whether McClain's civil rights were violated.”

Edited July 4, 20206 yr by Bluespunk

16 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

The guy who responded “Ha ha” was involved in the incident that lead to the death of dead man the other officers mocked. 
 

He’s got much worse coming his way I suspect. 
 

 

“Colorado Governor Jared Polis has appointed a special prosecutor to review the case, and this week the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice said they are investigating whether McClain's civil rights were violated.”

 

in that case, how 'bout we wait until he's convicted?

if this is anything like the chauvin/floyd situation, he should do time.

but what if he's found not guilty of whatever charges are brought?

 

and is "haha" a hanging offense?  could be considered in poor taste, but not necessarily actionable.  prosecutor would have to prove intent as well.  perhaps it wasn't a jolly haha, but a sardonic/sarcastic response to three idiots teasing him about his problems at work.  either way, a firing for "haha" unlikely to survive a court test.

 

 

8 minutes ago, ChouDoufu said:

 

in that case, how 'bout we wait until he's convicted?

if this is anything like the chauvin/floyd situation, he should do time.

but what if he's found not guilty of whatever charges are brought?

 

and is "haha" a hanging offense?  could be considered in poor taste, but not necessarily actionable.  prosecutor would have to prove intent as well.  perhaps it wasn't a jolly haha, but a sardonic/sarcastic response to three idiots teasing him about his problems at work.  either way, a firing for "haha" unlikely to survive a court test.

 

 

If you are involved in the death of a victim and are then sent pictures of the of said person being mocked by these ex-officers, I’d imagine the only responses should have been none or report it.

 

Ha ha is probably one of the most callous, crass, ignorant and stupid options out there.
 

Yet that is the one he went with. 

Edited July 4, 20206 yr by Bluespunk

1 hour ago, ChouDoufu said:

pretty stupid of the three officers to take the photos in uniform and then post them.  but the fourth?

 

The interim chief confirmed Rosenblatt had no part in the taking or distribution of the photos, but they were sent to him, and he replied with an inappropriate response.

 

https://denver.cbslocal.com/2020/07/03/3-aurora-police-officers-fired-over-elijah-mcclain-photo-scandal/

 

 

lucky they don't have some sort of guarantee of ability to speak freely in public, otherwise rosenblatt should soon be collecting a yuuuuge sum of money.

 

"your honor, the defendant said 'haha'!"

thinking back... they hanged Lord Ha Ha 

15 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

If you are involved in the death of a victim and are then sent pictures of the of said person being mocked by these ex-officers, I’d imagine the only responses should have been none or report it.

 

Ha ha is probably one of the most callous, crass, ignorant and stupid options out there.
 

Yet that is the one he went with. 

 

please post a link the statutes covering the penalties for callousness, crassness, ignorance and stupidity.

 

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"

7 minutes ago, ChouDoufu said:

 

please post a link the statutes covering the penalties for callousness, crassness, ignorance and stupidity.

 

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"

I imagine he breeched the standards his superiors expect from officers of the law.
 

Especially of one involved in the death of a citizen they are supposed to protect. 
 

 He took the option to exercise his right to free speech, no one stopped him, but in exercising it he paid the appropriate price. 
 

Zero sympathy for him from me. 

Edited July 4, 20206 yr by Bluespunk

2 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

I imagine he breeches the standards his superiors expect of officers of the law.
 

 He took the option to exercise his right to free speech, no one stopped him, but in exercising it he paid the appropriate price. 
 

Zero sympathy for him from me. 

 

then you inhabit a world without freedom of speech, where your liberties are determined by the the whims of your superiors, vague and subject to change.  subjects must self-censor, afraid any minor utterance judged unworthy by the mob will result in loss of employment or liberty.

 

sad.

3 minutes ago, ChouDoufu said:

 

then you inhabit a world without freedom of speech, where your liberties are determined by the the whims of your superiors, vague and subject to change.  subjects must self-censor, afraid any minor utterance judged unworthy by the mob will result in loss of employment or liberty.

 

sad.

No, I live in a world where you pay the consequences for your actions. 
 

The response of this officer achieved that. 
 

Good riddance. 

I'm glad black humour is alive and well [no pun intended].  

 

All I see is pious outrage but I'm uncertain as to what the photo represents other than three police officers having a laugh, with one putting his arm around the neck of his colleague.  I've had many similar photos of high jinks taken with colleagues in my life.  It's just a photo.  

^^ Indeed, but the left and enablers will spring on anything. They'll have white officers fired for smiling soon. Sad.

dupe

Edited July 4, 20206 yr by daveAustin

Idiots they deserved to get canned this is the behavior exhibited by rebellious teens they definitely do not have the quality’s to handle a really tough job of beeing a cop especially in thease polarized times good riddance 

7 hours ago, JonnyF said:

Incredibly stupid, disrespectful, crass behaviour from the officers.

 

Great news for any BLM supporters in Denver that need a new 80" flatscreen TV though.

Agreed that it was incredibly stupid to put those photos on a publicly accessible media. Everyone should know not to do so. Perhaps they should lose their jobs for apparently being really stupid.

 

Crass behaviour, yes, but not the sort of behaviour unknown in the sort of personality that willingly puts themselves in harm's way. Such behaviour would, IMO, be common among front line soldiers and police officers. Certainly was in my time in the military.

13 hours ago, Bluespunk said:

No, I live in a world where you pay the consequences for your actions. 
 

The response of this officer achieved that. 
 

Good riddance. 

 

I could be mistaken (and if so, please correct me), but the impression from your comments on topic about statues being taken down/damaged was that those directly involved in such actions ought to be exempt from the consequences of their actions (or at least, shown lenience).

 

With regard to the OP - assuming all facts are as reported, IMO the whole bunch ought to be sacked.

14 hours ago, ChouDoufu said:

 

please post a link the statutes covering the penalties for callousness, crassness, ignorance and stupidity.

 

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"

It will certainly be taken into account at sentencing.

 

Lawyer...he has shown remorse so should get a reduction of sentence.

 

Judge...ha ha.

32 minutes ago, Morch said:

 

I could be mistaken (and if so, please correct me), but the impression from your comments on topic about statues being taken down/damaged was that those directly involved in such actions ought to be exempt from the consequences of their actions (or at least, shown lenience).

 

With regard to the OP - assuming all facts are as reported, IMO the whole bunch ought to be sacked.

 I never said they should be exempt from action. 
 

I understand why they did what they did and have every sympathy for what their actions. 
 

I have said I wouldn’t have done it that way myself, however sometimes direct action is what it takes to spark a debate and a change in perception.
 

Edited July 5, 20206 yr by Bluespunk
Off topic comments

12 hours ago, torturedsole said:

I'm glad black humour is alive and well [no pun intended].  

 

All I see is pious outrage but I'm uncertain as to what the photo represents other than three police officers having a laugh, with one putting his arm around the neck of his colleague.  I've had many similar photos of high jinks taken with colleagues in my life.  It's just a photo.  

So police officers kill someone with a choke hold, joke about that by re-enacting and photographing that, and you think 'who cares, it's just a joke'.

14 hours ago, ChouDoufu said:

 

then you inhabit a world without freedom of speech, where your liberties are determined by the the whims of your superiors, vague and subject to change.  subjects must self-censor, afraid any minor utterance judged unworthy by the mob will result in loss of employment or liberty.

 

sad.

With rights, and freedoms comes responsibility. I feel he displayed not only callous disregard, but also inability to understand some his responsibilities, and one would imagine in breach of professional standards  

14 hours ago, ChouDoufu said:

freedom of speech

*Some* Americans have an absurd fetish regarding their constitution. Strangely they only ever talk about 'free speech' and 'the right to walk around the local mall with an assault rifle - if you're white'. If you're a black kid with a toy gun, the cops will shoot you dead. Where does the constitution talk about toy guns? It doesn't. Bad luck. kid.

Edited July 5, 20206 yr by teatime101

Rule No1:

sub clause (a) Individual - Don't Get Caught

sub clause (b) Department - Leave No Witnesses

20 hours ago, ChouDoufu said:

 

please post a link the statutes covering the penalties for callousness, crassness, ignorance and stupidity.

 

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"

This is not a question of criminal law so I have no idea why you're asking for a link to statutes.

22 hours ago, JonnyF said:

Incredibly stupid, disrespectful, crass behaviour from the officers.

 

Great news for any BLM supporters in Denver that need a new 80" flatscreen TV though.

What? You mocking poverty? despicable.

2 minutes ago, wabothai said:

What? You mocking poverty? despicable.

I don't think looting is about poverty.

Just now, faraday said:

I don't think looting is about poverty.

read between the lines, and who says it.

the impression i get from the article, and the googles, is that the three former officers took some photos and texted them directly to their buddies.  sent from phone to phone, not on facebook or other social media.  one of the recipients reported this to their supervisor.  i'd have to assume the supervisor then read all the private conversations on the offending officers' cellphones.  thus the phrase "photos surfaced" rather than posted on whatever viral social media.

 

i'd also note that it was "the authorities" that released the photos, so there was no public posting.  interesting.  that would normally be a considered a minor infraction, dealt with by way of a couple hours training and perhaps a letter put in the personnel file.  of course in the age of mob justice, seems they want to throw their officers under the bus before the looting starts.

 

the three officers having taken the photos in uniform do have to answer for their actions.  the fourth, having neither participated in the photo shoot nor the distribution, is blameless.  he responded via private phone message.

 

scary.  getting fired for your private conversations.  i don't like that world one bit.  sounds a lot like what would be expected in china.

 

 

Edited July 5, 20206 yr by ChouDoufu

22 hours ago, JonnyF said:

Incredibly stupid, disrespectful, crass behaviour from the officers.

 

Great news for any BLM supporters in Denver that need a new 80" flatscreen TV though.

The  real problem is that it  undeniably  supports  the  very cause of the BLM call.

I have seen the  video of that  "arrest" and it was unjustified anyway. That these  pieces of  uniformed  excrement  considered  the outcome  somehow humourously  heroic should result in them  being  imprisoned. !

10 minutes ago, ChouDoufu said:

the impression i get from the article, and the googles, is that the three former officers took some photos and texted them directly to their buddies.  sent from phone to phone, not on facebook or other social media.  one of the recipients reported this to their supervisor.  i'd have to assume the supervisor then read all the private conversations on the offending officers' cellphones.  thus the phrase "photos surfaced" rather than posted on whatever viral social media.

 

i'd also note that it was "the authorities" that released the photos, so there was no public posting.  interesting.  that would normally be a considered a minor infraction, dealt with by way of a couple hours training and perhaps a letter put in the personnel file.  of course in the age of mob justice, seems they want to throw their officers under the bus before the looting starts.

 

the three officers having taken the photos in uniform do have to answer for their actions.  the fourth, having neither participated in the photo shoot nor the distribution, is blameless.  he responded via private phone message.

 

scary.  getting fired for your private conversations.  i don't like that world one bit.  sounds a lot like what would be expected in china.

 

 

????