Autopsy awaited in Black man's death after Fight with Police

• Originally published by the Pasadena Star-News [here ]
  

By Marshall Allen

Saturday, August 14, 2004 -  PASADENA --  The autopsy of a man who lapsed into a coma and eventually died after an altercation with the police will determine whether a criminal investigation is launched into the actions of officers involved in the incident, according to authorities.

LaMont Robinson, 30, of Pasadena died July 10. He had been comatose at Huntington Hospital since the April 10 altercation with police.

The Pasadena Police Department launched an administrative review of the use of force immediately after the incident but Deputy Chief Wayne Hiltz said no conclusions have been reached.

The District Attorney's Office and the FBI also are investigating the Robinson incident.

Robinson's death is the second recent case to be investigated by the three agencies. A Pasadena police officer was found justified in the April 24 fatal shooting of Maurice Clark, 30, after an investigation by the department. The District Attorney's Office and FBI are still investigating the Clark incident.

Cmdr. Rod Uyeda of the Pasadena Police Department said the altercation between Robinson and officers occurred at 9:42 p.m. on Mentone Avenue. Officers stopped to talk to Robinson, who was mumbling because his mouth was full, Uyeda said.

"He had a significant amount of what appeared to be cocaine in his mouth,' Uyeda said.

The officers tried to force what looked like several grams of rock cocaine from Robinson's mouth and a struggle ensued, Uyeda said. Uyeda described Robinson as a large man about 6 feet 1 and 220 pounds.

"It was a big fight' with as many as eight officers involved, Uyeda said. "The guy just refused to open his mouth.'

The officers did not want Robinson to swallow the cocaine because they would lose their evidence against him, Uyeda said. But they also did not want him to ingest it because it would kill him, he said.

At one point, officers were on top of Robinson, some trying to put his arms behind his back, others attempting to force open his mouth, Uyeda said. Police believe Robinson swallowed the majority of the cocaine, Uyeda said.

An officer also tried to use a carotid pressure point hold on Robinson's neck, but he was struggling too much, Uyeda said.

Robinson lost consciousness and appeared to stop breathing at some point in the fight, Uyeda said. He said the officers started CPR to revive him.

According to the log of radio calls, the fight lasted about six minutes, Uyeda said. Officers at the scene said all was clear at 9:49 p.m. The officers at the scene told paramedics that Robinson had swallowed "a large amount of cocaine,' Uyeda said.

Lisa Hosey of Altadena, Robinson's sister, said a few days after the altercation that Robinson suffered from severe brain swelling. Doctors attributed the injuries to oxygen being cut off to Robinson's brain for a significant amount of time, Hosey said. Doctors also said a chokehold or a drug overdose could have caused the lack of oxygen, she said.

Robinson tested positive for cocaine and alcohol in his system after the incident, Hosey said.

But she questioned the police officers' use of force to subdue her brother. Robinson was only 6 feet tall and 160 pounds, she said.

"If you look at his physical stature, the need for eight police officers is ridiculous,' Hosey said.

Eyewitnesses said the police used excessive force in the incident, Hosey said. Robinson also had a broken nose and open cuts and bruising all over his body after the fight, she said.

"I'm not saying my brother doesn't have his share of problems,' Hosey said. "His primary problem was a drug problem, but that doesn't mean he needs to be killed for it.'

Hiltz, the deputy chief, said the autopsy report will determine the cause of Robinson's death.

The autopsy was performed July 14 and all test results will be returned by mid-September or October, according to officials at the L.A. County Coroner's Office. The Pasadena Police Department has placed a security hold on all results from the autopsy, coroner's officials said.

The coroner's final report whether it indicates ingestion or death at the hands of the officers will determine the course of the investigation, Hiltz said.

Joe Brown, president of the Pasadena branch of the NAACP, said it was completely unnecessary for the police to try to wrest the drugs from Robinson's mouth. If there is need to retrieve drugs from a suspect's mouth, police can always arrest a suspect and later pump his stomach, Brown said.

"I don't see anything warranting that type of severity, particularly on something that would appear to be minor,' Brown said.