CMPD asks SBI to investigate man’s death following police arrest
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department has asked the State Bureau of Investigation to conduct an independent review into the death of Harold Jermaine Easter.
Easter, 41, was arrested last Thursday morning and died Sunday, according to police. Officials said that while being interviewed and processed for arrest, Easter fell unconscious. Police said officers rendered medical aid to him before he was taken to the hospital by Medic.
The decisions comes “after consulting with Mecklenburg County District Attorney Spencer Merriweather and family members of Mr. Easter,” police said Thursday evening.
On Tuesday, family members and friends of Easter called on city officials and the police chief for transparency and an external investigation into his death. The gathering, which attracted around 30 people, took place outside of the CMPD substation where Easter was held before he was transported to the hospital.
“We will not allow this to be just swept under the rug,” said Gemini Boyd, a friend of Easter’s. “We want justice for this family and this community.”
According to one of Easter’s cousins, Tyrone Sifford, doctors said Easter suffered a heart attack while inside the substation and another one while being transported to the hospital. CMPD officials have refused to detail what kind of medical issue Easter experienced but said that he had a medical emergency after his arrest and lost consciousness while in police custody.
Police have not said how long Easter was in their custody before he fell ill or whether he was alone or accompanied by officers at the time he lost consciousness.
After a SBI investigation, CMPD would conduct a separate investigation into whether policies and procedures were followed during the incident.
The day after Easter’s death, four officers and a sergeant were placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure for any investigation into an in-custody death.
The arrest
Easter was arrested on drug and traffic charges near Whisnant and Burton streets, just north of uptown, after a traffic stop on Jan. 23. Before the arrest, officers had “observed a suspected drug transaction,” according to CMPD.
Easter was driving the car and officers have said they found him in possession of cocaine and marijuana, according to CMPD’s statement from last Friday.
One of the officers placed on leave, Brentley Vinson, was the officer who shot and killed Keith Lamont Scott in September 2016. Scott’s death set off two days of demonstrations across the city. Vinson was later cleared by then-Mecklenburg District Attorney Andrew Murray, who ruled that the use of deadly force was legally justified.
The other officers placed on administrative leave were Michael Benfield, Michael Joseph, Shon Sheffield and Sergeant Nicolas Vincent.
