New York’s Attorney General has announced no officers will be charged following an investigation into the death of Daniel Prude, a 41-year-old Black man who died after being restrained by Rochester police last year.
New York Attorney General Letitia James said Tuesday that her office presented the “strongest case possible” to a grand jury, but the grand jury decided not to indict any officers in the case. James’ office is required to investigate police-involved deaths of unarmed civilians under state law.
Family has said Prude, who was visiting Rochester from Chicago, was in the midst of a mental health crisis and acting erratically when they called police for help in March 2020.
Disturbing video that surfaced months later showed Prude naked on a snowy street, wearing a “spit hood” over his heard during his encounter with police. One officer was seen pressing the man’s head into the ground with his hands as Prude was prone and handcuffed. An officer is heard saying that Prude vomited, and the man eventually becomes unresponsive.
Prude died a week later, and a medical examiner ruled his death was caused by “complications of asphyxia in the setting of physical restraint.”
The video drew protests in Rochester and across the country, along with questions over the handling of the probe by city officials. Seven Rochester police officers were suspended, and the city’s police chief stepped down in September. Union officials have insisted police followed their training.
