Alameda officers kneeling on Mario Gonzalez s back highlights dangers of restraint death
Death by restraint not unusual in Bay Area
Mario Gonzalez died after Alameda police knelt on his back. There are several other cases of restraint asphyxia in the Bay Area and beyond as well, despite police training that says people should not be handcuffed in a prone position for a long period of time. Evan Sernoffsky reports.
ALAMEDA, Calif. - The cases are strikingly similar. Law enforcement officers pressing down on a person’s back as they struggle to restrain them. Moments later, the person stops breathing.
Before police killed George Floyd last year in Minnesota while restraining him in a prone position, many people had died under similar circumstances in the Bay Area.