Dying black man told police ‘I can’t breathe’

Ohio police have released a video showing a black man – who later died – telling officers he cannot breathe as they pin him down after he fled a car crash.

The body camera footage released on Thursday by the Canton Police Department, shows officers apprehending Frank Tyson, 53.

The clip is reminiscent of the killing of George Floyd, the black man who died in May 2020, after a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes, in an incident that unleashed a wave of protests.

The 36-minute clip begins with a patrol officer coming upon a car that had struck an electrical pole and a bystander telling him that the driver of the vehicle had fled into a club for military veterans on the edge of Canton, 60 miles south of Cleveland.

Officers are then seen entering the establishment, where they find Tyson standing at the bar. An altercation ensued as they attempted to grab his arms, and he repeatedly shouts “they are trying to kill me” and “call the sheriff”.

Several officers grapple with Tyson, pinning him to the ground with his hands cuffed behind his back.

‘You’re fine’

Later, as one appeared to place a knee on his back near his neck for about 30 seconds, Tyson shouts several times: “I can’t breathe.”

One officer can be heard to respond: “You’re fine.”

The footage shows that, after Tyson had been arrested, the officers appeared as though they had forgotten about him and even engaged in some banter with other customers at the bar.

One customer says: “I always wanted to see a bar fight.”

Tyson is left lying on the ground for five minutes before one officer appears to release all is not well.

“He’s out,” the officer says.

‘Does he have a pulse?’

After 13 minutes, an officer attempts CPR, asking why an ambulance has not yet arrived. “Is he breathing?” asks one officer. “Does he have a pulse?” asks another.

Paramedics then arrive at the scene and take Tyson out of the bar on a stretcher and into a waiting ambulance, the video shows.

Tyson died at a local hospital, according to local broadcaster WKYC. The official cause of death has not been determined.

In the aftermath of Tyson’s death, William Sherer II, the Canton mayor, said that two officers involved in the incident had been placed on paid administrative leave and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) had been contacted.

“I first want to send my sincere condolences to the family of Mr Tyson. My intention is for us, as the City of Canton and a police department, to be fully transparent throughout this entire process,” he said.

He added: “We will make sure we comply with all protocols to ensure BCI has what is necessary to conduct what I know will be a thorough investigation.”

Police had been seeking Tyson in connection with a car crash.

“The investigation is being handled by [the] Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations,” Lt Dennis Garren, Canton police spokesman, said. “They are a part of the Attorney General’s office.”

The Canton Police Department identified the officers involved in the Tyson incident as Beau Schoenegge and Camden Burch.

Many will see parallels between what happened to Tyson and Floyd’s deadly encounter with Minneapolis police four years ago. A cellphone video of Floyd’s killing, which went viral, prompting protests worldwide against police brutality and racism.

It showed Derek Chauvin, kneeling on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes as he begs for his life, repeating “I can’t breathe” before falling silent.

A jury convicted Chauvin of unintentional second-degree murder.