×

Officers investigated in case

Shaqualla Johnson marches with other protesters Monday June 29, 2020, in Detroit. Protesters called for the police chief to resign. (Nicole Hester/Ann Arbor News via AP)

AURORA, Colo. (AP) — Multiple suburban Denver police officers have been placed on paid administrative leave amid an investigation into photos of them related to the case of a Black man who died last summer after he was stopped and restrained, police said Monday.

The interim police chief of the city of Aurora, Vanessa Wilson, said in a statement that the suspended officers were “depicted in photographs near the site where Elijah McClain died.” But her statement did not provide more details about what the images show. The two photos were taken near the place where police stopped McClain, 23, on Aug. 24, 2019 as they responded to a report of a suspicious person walking down the street wearing a face mask, said Officer Matthew Longshore, an Aurora police spokesperson. The pictures were not taken during the fatal encounter, Longshore said.

McClain’s death and previously released body camera video from the case generated renewed attention after the case of George Floyd emerged and prompted worldwide protests. Floyd died after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee against the handcuffed Black man’s neck for nearly eight minutes.

Aurora police have said McClain refused to stop walking and fought back when officers tried to take him into custody. The officers used a choke hold that cuts off blood to the brain — a tactic recently banned in several places following Floyd’s death.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper *
   

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today