If you didn’t know any better, you might think that law enforcement agencies were deathly allergic to transparency to the point that police officers carry EpiPens next to their service pistols.
According to ABC7, the Oakland Police Department (OPD) is refusing to publicly release the body camera footage that shows what happened when former NFL player Doug Martin died while in their custody. On October 18, Martin’s parents called the police to help them find their son as he had fled from their home in the midst of a mental health crisis. Officers located the ex-Raiders baller inside a neighbor’s home, where he allegedly made force entry, and placed him under arrest.
“Feeling overwhelmed and disoriented, Doug fled his home during the night and entered a neighbor’s residence two doors down, where he was taken into custody by police,” the family said in a statement sent to The Oaklandside.
Let OPD tell it, there was a “brief struggle” while trying to arrest Martin and in the midst of the fray, the former athlete suffered a “medical emergency” and was rendered aid before being taken to a local hospital, where he passed away.
The Oaklandside made a public records request to have the body camera video released, but Acting Police Chief James Beere claimed that the Public Records Act denied that request, citing a loophole that states that police can hide evidence if the public interest in keeping said evidence secret outweighs the interest in release. OPD also noted that the Community Police Review Agency is still investigating this case. Sounds like a word salad of plausible deniability if you ask us.
“Specifically, disclosure at this time would compromise privacy interests, and interfere with an ongoing investigation,” OPD wrote in response to our request.
Sure, Jan.
All officers involved are currently on paid leave while a combination of agencies, including, OPD’s Homicide Unit and Internal Affairs Bureau, the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office, and the Community Police Review Agency, poke and prod the case.
To make this matter even more sus, the cause of death hasn’t even been released. We’ll be watching this case very closely.
