In a civil rights probe launched amid outrage over the death of Elijah McClain, a Black man who was put in a chokehold and injected with ketamine, a powerful sedative, in 2019, found racial bias deeply ingrained within the fabric of the police department, Colorado’s attorney general said Wednesday. 

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said the investigation found the Aurora Police Department has long had a culture in which officers treat people of colour — especially Black people — differently than white people, according to Associated Press inputs.

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Weiser, further said that the agency also has a pattern of using unlawful excessive force; frequently escalates encounters with civilians; and fails to properly document police interactions with residents.

“These actions are unacceptable. They hurt the people that law enforcement is entrusted” to serve, Weiser opined.

Although initially, the 23-year-old’s death initially sparked little interest outside Aurora, it gained widespread attention during last year’s protests against racial injustice and police brutality following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.  

Earlier in the month, Weiser said a grand jury indicted officers Randy Roedema, Nathan Woodyard and Jason Rosenblatt and fire department paramedic Jeremy Cooper and fire Lt. Peter Cichuniec on charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in connection with McClain’s death.

Furthermore, the investigation cites numerous examples of biased policing by the Aurora department.

On August 24, 2019, McClain was walking home when he was detained by police responding to a 911 call reporting the massage therapist looked suspicious.  

According to an indictment, officers put McClain in a chokehold and pinned him down. Paramedics injected him with 500 milligrams of ketamine, an amount appropriate for someone 77 pounds (35 kilograms) heavier than McClain’s 143-pound (64-kilogram) frame, according to an indictment.

He fell unconscious, was pronounced brain-dead at a hospital, and was taken off life support.

His pleading words captured on police body camera video — “I’m just different” — were posted on signs at protests and chanted by celebrities who joined those calling for the prosecution of the officers.

Meanwhile, Weiser recommended the police department to commit to improvements in officer training, use-of-force rules, and, in particular, tighter criteria for police stops and arrests. If the department fails to comply, he said his office would seek a court order requiring it to do so — but he added that the agency cooperated completely with the inquiry.

The Aurora Police Department has been plagued by allegations of misconduct against people of colour, including an officer charged this summer with pistol-whipping a Black man during an arrest. The department’s new chief has vowed to rebuild public trust, according to Associated Press inputs.

With inputs from the Associated Press