Source: AAron Ontiveroz/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images / Getty
Justice has finally been served in the death of 23-year-old Colorado man Elijah McClain.
One of the officers, Randy Roedema, who helped subdued McClain back in 2019 was found guilty of criminally negligent homicide and assault by a jury. However, the other officer, Jason Rosenblatt got away with his participation in McClain’s death and was acquitted of all charges, including reckless manslaughter and assault.
The jury’s decision came after a 16-hour deliberation over the course of three days.
The outcome rightfully upset McClain’s mother, Sheneen, who doesn’t think Roedema’s punishment is enough.
“This is not justice. This is not a victory for me at all. This is not a victory for the human race. This is not justice,” Sheneen McClain told KUSA. “They have an eternal judgment that they have yet to see. And no matter how they try to clean up their slate, they still have my son’s blood on their hands.”
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said he hopes the verdict can help the Aurora community heal, adding, “Everyone in Colorado, everyone in the United States, no matter who you are, is accountable under the law.”
In August of 2019 McClain was wearing headphones and walking home from a convenience store when a driver called cops and reported that someone “sketchy” was walking the neighborhood. McClain was wearing a ski mask, which his mother said was because anemia often left him cold.
When cops eventually approached him, bodycam footage showed them telling him he’s being suspicious to which McClain replied, “I’m an introvert. Please respect the boundaries that I’m speaking … I’m going home.”
He’d soon be tackled by Officers Nathan Woodyard, Roedema and Rosenblatt before being placed in a chokehold despite his pleas of “I can’t breathe” while eventually losing consciousness.
When paramedics arrived on the scene he was injected with a heavy dose of ketamine, which sent him into cardiac arrest. He never woke up and died in the hospital three days later.
Officer Woodyard and the two paramedics who treated McClain, Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec, are set to go on trial in the coming weeks.
