The Justice Department announced Tuesday that it is reviewing the death of Elijah McClain to determine whether a federal civil rights investigation is “warranted.”
The Department released a statement Recognizing that he generally “does not dispute the existence or progress of ongoing investigations,” but made an exception for the McClain case.
“However, there are specific cases where doing so is warranted if such information is in the best interest of the public and public safety,” the department said. “Recent attention to the death of Elijah McClain warrants such disclosure.”
The statement also revealed that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado and the Denver FBI Division had been reviewing the case for a possible civil rights investigation since 2019.
The Justice Department said its Civil Rights Division is now involved in reviewing McClain’s death. The statement says the “matter is ongoing” as offices work to obtain more information from the Aurora Police Department and others, adding that the city has been cooperating.
The offices wrote that they were “aware” of reports that the officers involved in McClain’s arrest were released on leave while an internal investigation into a photograph of them appeared continues.
“We will have no further comment until both reviews are completed,” the statement added.
McClain’s death last year drew new scrutiny in the final weeks after the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in Minneapolis police custody. Floyd’s death sparked protests across the country calling for police reform and demanding justice for those who died while in police custody.
A Change.org petition conducted earlier this month requesting a “deeper investigation” as well as the removal of the involved agents from the Aurora Police Department has met more than 4 million signatures. Colorado government Jared Polis
Jared Schutz Polis Protesters protesting the death of Elijah McClain shut down the Colorado highway Colorado Governor signs a bill approving vaccine exemptions Officials involved in the death of Elijah McClain withdrew from street service ‘ in an effort to protect them ‘MORE (D) also called officials to investigate McClain’s death.
McClain, a black man who worked as a masseuse, died after a confrontation with the police. Police put McClain in a stranglehold, and the man experienced a heart attack in an ambulance before being declared brain dead three days later.
His last words were documented in images from the police camera: “I am an introvert. I am just different. That’s it. So sorry. I don’t have a gun. I don’t do that. I don’t fight. Why do you attack me? I don’t even kill flies! I do not eat meat! But I don’t judge people, I don’t judge people who eat meat. Excuse me I’m so sorry “.
The officers involved in the arrest were placed on administrative leave Thursday after Photos allegedly appeared showing them near the site where McClain died. The photos prompted acting Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson to make the investigation a “top priority,” it said in a statement Monday.
Authorities have not provided further details on the unpublished photos, but sources told a local CBS affiliate that the photos allegedly depict officers recreating the suspension that occurred prior to McClain’s death.
Protests over McClain’s death blocked a highway in Aurora over the weekend.
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