Mayor John Hickenlooper met with family members of a man who died two months ago in the new city jail, and later, at a joint news conference, he vowed a fair investigation. “We will do everything we can to get all the facts and arrive at a fair resolution,” Hickenlooper said Thursday while standing with several family members of Marvin Booker, 56, who died July 9. “I am not in any way accepting guilt or implying guilt.”
Booker stopped breathing in the early-morning hours while he was being restrained by five deputies, who used a carotid choke hold and a Taser. Hickenlooper said there will be consequences if the investigation determines wrongdoing.
Hickenlooper said he has not seen video of the event because District Attorney Mitch Morrissey said officials cannot legally release the video while the criminal investigation is ongoing. Darold W. Killmer, attorney for the Booker family, said there is no law that prohibits the city from releasing the videotape. Colorado law, however, does give law enforcement agencies broad authority to withhold from the public information they deem investigative. Kirk Mitchell, The Denver Post
