The in-custody death of Herman Whitfield III has been ruled a homicide, according to the Marion County Coroner’s Office.
Whitfield died on April 25 after being tased by Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officers. Body camera footage released last month showed Whitfield yelling “I can’t breathe” repeatedly while being detained by officers.
According to the autopsy report, Whitfield’s cause of death is “cardiopulmonary arrest in the setting of law enforcement subdual, prone restraint, and conducted electrical weapon use.”
IMPD says the case will be turned over by the end of the day Friday to the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office, which will consider charges.
This is a developing story. It will be updated.
Contact WFYI criminal justice reporter Katrina Pross at kpross@wfyi.org. Follow on Twitter: @katrina_pross.
Pross is a Corps Member of Report for America, an initiative of The GroundTruth Project.
