CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A second night of protest in Uptown included family and friends of Harold Easter who say they will continue to march and fight for justice so that Easter’s death isn’t in vain.
They tell WCNC Charlotte their biggest concern is police accountability. They've hired an attorney to make that happen.
“This is a case where there was a policy and it wasn’t followed,” said attorney Alex Heroy, who is representing the family through Charlotte firm James, McElroy and Diehl, P.A.
Heroy said the family believes Easter’s death could have been prevented if officers simply followed CMPD’s policies.
“They were sworn in and basically said they would serve and protect and they didn’t do that,” family member Detrise Maddox said. “They left this man for so long.”
CMPD’s policy cites that officers must call for MEDIC when that occurs, but Heroy said none of the officers involved did. Instead, the officers placed Easter in a holding cell, where he later began to seize.
CMPD announced the officers involved resigned, but Easter’s sister Andrell Mackey says that’s not enough.
“I feel like they need to be held accountable for what they’ve done cause now I feel like they got off easy,” Mackey said.
Mackey she would like to have seen the officers fired and criminally charged. Dozens who agree with her marched throughout the streets of uptown Friday for a second night chanting Harold Easter’s name and calling for justice.
The family has also started #TheMaineWay in honor of Easter’s nickname known as Jermaine and the good energy he was known to bring.
“Let’s just keep his legacy alive. I know the way he passed we are angry about that, but of course we want to keep the positivity going. He was a great person.”
Easter’s family attorney says they hope to reach a resolution with CMPD before they consider pursuing a civil suit.
This week CMPD released 17 videos documenting Easter’s arrest and subsequent death. Heroy said he first viewed these videos alongside Easter’s sister back in February. He said while the decision to push for the videos to go public was hard for the family, he believes it was necessary.
“For the whole world to see their brother, their son, their dad, their cousin die the way he did, horribly and painfully, that was a very difficult decision to put that out to the world," Heroy said. "But ultimately we felt it was important to come out so it doesn’t happen to anyone else and so that the world."
In the videos, the arresting officers are heard saying, “he has crack all over his tongue,” while another responds, “I know, he was trying to eat it.”
“It wasn’t one officer who didn’t know it, there were at least five officers involved," Heroy said. "And none of them followed it, nobody said let's get MEDIC?"
Heroy said he and Harold’s mother have met directly with CMPD’s chief of police, had been meeting with the city and have ‘an open line of communication,’ saying they’d to see changes made.
“You can’t right that wrong, you can’t bring him back for his family, but we can make changes and we can seek recompense from the city so we’re trying to do all of those things,” he said, “Had Mr. Easter gotten medical attention he likely would have been with us today.”
We’ll never know what would have happened if MEDIC was called right away, but according to Mecklenburg EMS Agency Patient Care Protocols handbook, a person who’s ingested cocaine is given a reversal medication called Versed.
It said patients are also monitored for drug-induced heat-related emergency’s, including body temperatures higher than 107 degrees and dehydration
Easter’s cries for water were heard more than a half dozen times on the video provided by CMPD. After being placed in the holding room, Easter is heard yelling, “It’s hot in here” as he takes off his shirt.
He later cries out, “I’m going to die.”
Despite choosing to ingest drugs, Easter’s attorney said he deserved to be treated fairly and says while the videos hard to watch, it was necessary they were shared.
Heroy said ultimately Easter’s family is hoping to change that so officers who don’t follow policies will face stricter repercussions.