Tanisha Anderson was restrained in prone position; death rul

The progress from Western colonial global expansion, and the construction of American wealth and industry on the backs of enslaved Blacks and Native peoples, followed by the abrupt "emancipation" of the slaves and their exodus from the South to the Northern cities, has led us to our current divided society. Divided by economic inequities and unequal access to social resources, the nation lives in a media dream of social harmony, or did until YouTube set its bed on fire. Now, it is common knowledge that our current system of brutal racist policing and punitive over-incarceration serves the dual purpose of maintaining racial prejudice and the inequities it justifies. Brief yourself on this late-breaking development in American history here.

Tanisha Anderson was restrained in prone position; death rul

Postby admin » Wed Jun 24, 2015 8:24 am

Tanisha Anderson was restrained in prone position; death ruled homicide
by Cory Shaffer
January 2, 2015

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Tanisha Anderson

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Tanisha Anderson died as a result of being physically restrained in a prone position by Cleveland police on Nov. 13, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's office announced Friday.

Her death was ruled a homicide.

Anderson's official cause of death was ruled "sudden death associated with physical restraint in a prone position," according to the medical examiner's office. Her heart disease and bipolar disorder were considered factors that increased her chance of sudden death, office spokesman Chris Harris said.

Anderson, a 37-year-old East High School graduate, has been held up by protestors as an example of police violence alongside Tamir Rice, Michael Brown and Eric Garner, among others.

Her family called police twice on Nov. 13 to report the 37-year-old woman was disturbing the peace, police said. They eventually agreed to let police take her to St. Vincent Charity Medical Center for a mental health evaluation.

Police said Anderson began to kick at the officers as they escorted her to a police car, and went limp during the struggle. But Anderson's brother, Joell Anderson, told Northeast Ohio Media Group that Anderson got nervous after voluntarily getting into the back of the police car.

She left the cruiser, and a police officer performed a take-down move, placed his knee on Anderson's back as she lay face-down on the pavement and handcuffed her before she stopped moving, according to Anderson's family.

The department's Use of Deadly Force Investigation Team continues to probe the incident. Investigators have not yet determined if the officer's use of force was justified, but Anderson has become one of the faces of a 58-page Justice Department report that found, among other things, many Cleveland police officers are not properly trained to handle encounters with residents with mental illnesses.

Specifically, the report found, officers often do not practice proper deescalation techniques to keep a situation from getting out of control and wind up using cruel and excessive force against the mentally and medically ill.

It's unclear if the officers involved in Anderson's arrest were among the department's 400 certified crisis intervention officers. The family has publicly called for the department to require every Cleveland police officer to receive 40 hours of special training given by the Cuyahoga County Board of Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services.

The officers are on restricted duty, police spokeswoman detective Jennifer Ciaccia said Friday.

Mauvion Green, Anderson's 16-year-old daughter, said she hopes her mother's death will be a catalyst for change.

"I am hoping for a change in the police system," Green said. "If they have a job to protect people, that's what they should be doing."

Through a spokesman, Anderson's family on Friday demanded "a thorough criminal investigation and an independent prosecutor that results in accountability by the police officers and the Cleveland police department."
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