DENVER—No charges will be filed against deputies who shocked and subdued an unruly inmate who died at Denver’s new jail, authorities said Tuesday.
Deputies were justified in their use of force against 56-year-old Marvin Booker, District Attorney Mitch Morrissey said.
Booker died July 9 after he was placed in a “sleeper” hold and shocked with a Taser in an incident in which deputies also piled on top of him.
Booker disobeyed orders and cursed at a female deputy who was trying to put him in a holding cell before three other deputies joined the fray, Morrissey said.
Booker continued to resist when all he needed to do was comply with orders, the district attorney said in the prepared statement.
“There is not supposed to be a fight. Arrestee compliance is not optional, it is mandatory,” he wrote.
Booker had been arrested for investigation of possession of drug paraphernalia.
Morrissey noted the 135-pound, 5-foot-5-inch Booker was surprisingly strong. Surveillance video played in slow motion and stopped several times helped the district attorney reach his conclusion.
A coroner’s report said Booker’s death was caused by cardio-respiratory arrest during physical restraint. The autopsy also found contributing factors that included emphysema, an enlarged heart and recent cocaine use, Morrissey said.
Booker’s family was devastated by the announcement, said the Rev. Timothy Tyler, a longtime friend of Booker’s father, Benjamin Booker, and a pastor of Shorter Community African Methodist Episcopal Church.
“It looks like they have blamed the dead man,” Tyler said. “I believe the community will be outraged, people in power have betrayed our trust.”
Mayor John Hickenlooper, a Democratic gubernatorial candidate, said the deputies involved in the case remained on administrative leave during an ongoing internal affairs investigation.
“We remain committed to a thorough, fair and timely review of the case,” he said in a statement.
He also said he was working with the family to allow a private viewing of the surveillance video, which will not be publicly released until the internal affairs investigation is complete.
Councilman Paul Lopez said it’s important to ensure the internal investigation is swift, fair and transparent.
“There’s a lot of people that are grieving with this family in the community around this case,” he said.
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Associated Press Writer Ivan Moreno contributed to this report.
