Jonathan White, 29, died in police custody Tuesday after officers used a Taser to try and subdue him. (KTLA-TV) |
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (KTLA) -- A 29-year-old man died while in police custody, after officers used pepper spray and a Taser to try and subdue him.
The man, Jonathan White, may have had lived at a board and care facility managed by his mother in the 1100 block of E. 26th Street, according to police.
San Bernardino police responded to the facility just after 9 a.m. after White's mother, Janice, reported him for yelling and frightening the other residents there, authorities said.
"He began causing the disturbance the night before," said San Bernardino police Lt. Gwen Waters. "It's alleged that he may have been on drugs and may have had mental issues on top of that."
Janice White told KTLA that her son suffered from schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder. When she called 9-1-1, she told dispatchers that they'd need to have several officers on the scene to deal with her son.
"He just went crazy on me," she said. "I had to call the police. He started going off and throwing things and he took off his clothes and everything and was just yelling at nobody. He was just standing there yelling for no reason."
The residents of the home are mostly people with mental disabilities, she said.
Two officers arrived -- a regular officer and a reserve officer, Waters said. They tried to take White into custody.
"They were trying to get him out of that home so they could get him help," Waters said.
But the man resisted and began fighting with officers, she said.
White never attacked the officers, Waters said, but he was "very violently resistive."
Officers never struck White with their fists, feet or nightsticks, Waters said.
"There were no blows," she said.
They twice used a Taser and later pepper spray to try to control White, but both were ineffective, Waters said.
"It's possible that (the Taser) didn't complete a circuit," she said.
The officers struggled with White until enough officers arrived to hold him down.
At some point a patrol sergeant arrived on scene to help the two officers working the call, Waters said.
Paramedics were called to the scene because "of the violence with which White resisted," according to the police news release. While paramedics were evaluating White, he stopped breathing.
They rushed him to St. Bernardine's Medical Center in San Bernardino where he was pronounced dead at 10:10 a.m.
The San Bernardino County Coroner will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of his death.
"We understand the Coroner will conduct the autopsy this week," Waters said. "As soon as tomorrow. Maybe Thursday."
The San Bernardino Police Department will conduct a full investigation -- which will include information downloaded from the Taser.
The findings of that investigation will be forwarded to the San Bernardino District Attorney's Office. Prosecutors will then determine if White's death was accidental or if criminal charges should be filed against the officers involved.
Paramedics treated three officers for minor injuries they sustained during the struggle with White.
The man, Jonathan White, may have had lived at a board and care facility managed by his mother in the 1100 block of E. 26th Street, according to police.
San Bernardino police responded to the facility just after 9 a.m. after White's mother, Janice, reported him for yelling and frightening the other residents there, authorities said.
"He began causing the disturbance the night before," said San Bernardino police Lt. Gwen Waters. "It's alleged that he may have been on drugs and may have had mental issues on top of that."
Janice White told KTLA that her son suffered from schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder. When she called 9-1-1, she told dispatchers that they'd need to have several officers on the scene to deal with her son.
"He just went crazy on me," she said. "I had to call the police. He started going off and throwing things and he took off his clothes and everything and was just yelling at nobody. He was just standing there yelling for no reason."
The residents of the home are mostly people with mental disabilities, she said.
Two officers arrived -- a regular officer and a reserve officer, Waters said. They tried to take White into custody.
"They were trying to get him out of that home so they could get him help," Waters said.
But the man resisted and began fighting with officers, she said.
White never attacked the officers, Waters said, but he was "very violently resistive."
Officers never struck White with their fists, feet or nightsticks, Waters said.
"There were no blows," she said.
They twice used a Taser and later pepper spray to try to control White, but both were ineffective, Waters said.
"It's possible that (the Taser) didn't complete a circuit," she said.
The officers struggled with White until enough officers arrived to hold him down.
At some point a patrol sergeant arrived on scene to help the two officers working the call, Waters said.
Paramedics were called to the scene because "of the violence with which White resisted," according to the police news release. While paramedics were evaluating White, he stopped breathing.
They rushed him to St. Bernardine's Medical Center in San Bernardino where he was pronounced dead at 10:10 a.m.
The San Bernardino County Coroner will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of his death.
"We understand the Coroner will conduct the autopsy this week," Waters said. "As soon as tomorrow. Maybe Thursday."
The San Bernardino Police Department will conduct a full investigation -- which will include information downloaded from the Taser.
The findings of that investigation will be forwarded to the San Bernardino District Attorney's Office. Prosecutors will then determine if White's death was accidental or if criminal charges should be filed against the officers involved.
Paramedics treated three officers for minor injuries they sustained during the struggle with White.
