Ben Crump Representing Charles Adair’s Family In Civil Lawsuit 

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump is representing Charles Adair’s family in a federal civil rights case against Wyandotte County, Deputy Richard Fatherley, and Wyandotte County Sheriff Daniel Soptic. 

Attorneys Harry Daniels, Gabrielle Higgins, and Sue-Ann Robinson are also representing the family, according to a press release sent to NewsOne. “This lawsuit was filed because even after criminal charges were brought, the public still has not been allowed to see the video of what happened to Charles Adair,” said Crump. 

Last July, Charles Adair was held in the Wyandotte County detention center in Kansas City, Kansas. Adair was a pretrial detainee who was being held over misdemeanor traffic violations. At the time of his incarceration, Adair had a leg infection so severe that it would have needed to be amputated. He was taken to a hospital where his leg was rewrapped, and a medical screening found he was schizophrenic. 

Adair was taken back to the detention center in a wheelchair and handcuffs, with several deputies who were interviewed after the incident saying he was incoherent. The deputies placed Adair on his bed with his stomach down, which led to him yelling for help. Despite being handcuffed and lacking the ability to even walk, Deputy Richard Fatherley thought the appropriate response was to place his knee on Adair’s back for 1 minute and 36 seconds until Adair was no longer moving. Security cameras caught the entire incident, but the Wyandotte Sheriff’s office has refused to release it. 

“Our team has seen that video on camera at the Wyandotte County Attorney’s Office. What it shows, according to our complaint, is a man with a visibly serious leg injury, who posed no threat, being suffocated facedown on a bed while officers pressed their weight onto him,” Crump said in the press release. “The public has a right to transparency when someone dies in custody in this manner. Charles’s family deserves the truth, and one of our demands is that this video finally be released to the public.” 

“This case is about accountability at every level,” said Daniels. “The complaint alleges a failure to intervene, a failure to recognize medical distress, and a failure to follow basic standards of care for a vulnerable person in custody. We intend to hold every responsible party accountable for what happened to Charles Adair.”

A medical examiner ruled that Adair’s death was a homicide caused by “mechanical asphyxia,” which occurs when a person’s breathing is obstructed. Wyandotte County District Attorney Mark Dupree charged Fatherley with second-degree murder and an alternative count of involuntary manslaughter last October in the death of Charles Adair. Fatherley’s attorney, James Spies, told reporters last year that while Adair’s death was tragic, it was caused not by excessive force, but due to his leg infection. 

It’s funny, I broke my foot earlier this year and can’t recall it having much impact on my respiratory function. It’s almost like the two things aren’t even remotely correlated, crazy. 

It’s unsurprising that the Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Office has refused to release the video because the description alone is horrifying. I’m sure that people actually seeing what happened with their own eyes would likely collapse any belief the public could have that Adair’s leg injury, and not a man kneeling on his back for 90 seconds, caused him to suffocate to death. 

SEE ALSO:

Kansas Deputy Charged With Charles Adair’s Murder Knelt On Him For 90 Seconds

Civil Rights Attorney Ben Crump Representing Saniyah Cheatham’s Family