Deputies Involved in Death of Mentally Ill Black Man in South Carolina Jail Are Fired

Two sheriff’s deputies whose attempt to remove a mentally ill Black man from his cell at a South Carolina detention center ended in his death early this year have been removed from their positions, the Charleston County Sheriff’s office announced Monday. Harrowing body-cam footage shows the fatal interaction between the 31-year-old Jamal Sutherland and Sgt. Lindsay Fickett and Deputy Brian Houle. In the video, Sutherland screams and twitches in agony as he is Tasered and maced, and at one point says. “I can’t breathe,” after a deputy puts his knee on Sutherland’s back. “Today, I made the decision to terminate the two detention deputies involved in the case,” Sheriff Kristin Graziano said via Twitter. “I must weigh the interest of public safety for the community against any incident that creates even the perception of an impairment to the operation of the Detention Center.” Prosecutors are reportedly weighing criminal charges against the now-former officers.