The family of Rhyker Earl, a 26-year-old father who died after being handcuffed following a medical emergency, said videos released last week from the body-worn cameras of sheriff's deputies responding to a call for an epileptic seizure at his Indiana home don’t add up.
“The last message I received from him said 'I had a seizure, but I feel fine...The next thing I knew he was life support,” said Cassie Paris, the mother of his two children, at a news conference with national civil rights attorney Ben Crump.
“If we were trying to teach a course in what not to do, it would be this video," Crump said. “It’s a teachable moment.” Crump said he wants a national discussion on how police handle medical emergencies like epilepsy, which is estimated to effect as many as three million Americans.
“Rhyker was unarmed, suffering from seizure clusters, surrounded by several officers, and presented no real risk of harm to the officers, yet multiple officers kept him down, using their weight to keep him face down,” Crump said.
Other relatives questioned whether the sheriff had released all of the video available.
"I will never forget my daughter, Miracle, flying out that front door screaming, they just killed him...they just killed him,” said Sharon Earl, Rhyker’s grandmother. “I didn’t hear that on the video,” she said.
In a statement, the Jasper County Sheriff said last week that, “The responsibility of the deputies was to prevent Mr. Earl from harming himself or the EMT personnel while they provided medical aid.”
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He said the videos were posted to YouTube in the interest of transparency.
“We feel it is critical that our community have as much information as possible and evaluate the incident independently of outside influences,” Sheriff Pat Williamson said. The Indiana State police have taken over the investigation into Earl’s death.
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The cause of death has not yet been released pending the results of toxicology tests.
“I will miss him and I just hope that there is some accountability taken for what happened,” said Travis Earl, Rhyker’s father. He wrapped his arms around his wife, Paris, during the news conference, which was held at the Urban League’s offices in Chicago’s Grand Crossing neighborhood.
Crump attributed Earl’s death to a “failure of duty” as well as a lack of training and compassion. He also questioned one scene in the video where an officer appears to restrain Earl by stepping on his back.
"Rhyker should have been shown dignity. A boot on the back of his neck while in medical distress is not dignity, and it's not the compassion that we expect from law enforcement,” Crump said.
Earl’s family and attorneys are keeping their options open about a potential lawsuit.
