On April 18th, bodycam footage was released showing the tragic incident where Frank Tyson, a 53-year-old Black man, died in police custody.
Footage from Officer Beau Schoenegge’s body camera shows him responding to a crash report and encountering Tyson at an AMVETS post. Tyson resisted arrest and claimed, “They’re trying to kill me.”
As officers restrained him, including with a knee on his back, Tyson repeatedly stated he could not breathe. Officers dismissed his pleas, urging him to calm down.
Five minutes later, an officer noticed Tyson had stopped moving. When they attempted to roll him over, he was unresponsive. CPR was initiated, but Tyson was pronounced dead at a hospital less than an hour later.
The Canton police report released on April 26th states that officers “recognized that Tyson had become unresponsive” and performed CPR. Narcan was also administered before medics arrived.
Tyson’s niece, Jasmine Tyson, expressed outrage over the video, stating, “It seemed like forever that they finally checked him.”
Two Canton traffic bureau officers, Schoenegge and Camden Burch, have been placed on paid administrative leave while the Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation investigates the incident. The investigation will not determine if force was justified; that decision will be made by the prosecuting attorney or a grand jury.
Canton Mayor William V. Sherer II has expressed condolences to Tyson’s family and pledged transparency with the community.
Police experts have warned against keeping suspects on their stomachs for prolonged periods as it can lead to positional asphyxia, a potentially fatal condition where the lungs are compressed and the heart is stressed.
The incident has drawn comparisons to the death of George Floyd, who died in police custody in Minneapolis in 2020 after repeatedly stating he could not breathe.
WARNING: GRAPHIC ⚠️ Police in Ohio commit an extrajudicial execution on a man who's heard saying "I can't breathe." One of the cops proudly says "I've always wanted to be in a bar fight" while Frank Tyson, 53, is facedown on the floor dying without first aid. pic.twitter.com/Evlr46BHZF
— Fifty Shades of Whey (@davenewworld_2) April 25, 2024
NEW: 53-year-old man dies after getting taken to the ground by police and telling them that he couldn’t breathe.
As Ohio man Frank Tyson was motionless on the ground, one officer could be heard bragging about the “bar fight.”
Tyson had just gotten out of prison according to… pic.twitter.com/vGUTHfLHI6
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 26, 2024
