New York’s Attorney General Letitia James has cleared Suffolk County Police of any wrongdoing in the death of a handcuffed man in Patchogue last July. Her investigation found officers acted appropriately.
According to interviews, and dash and body-camera footage, state investigators said police tried for more than 20 minutes to calm a naked and incoherent Wenzola Rountree who was in the backyard of a 911-caller’s backyard. Rountree then took off and entered a separate family’s home. Body camera footage shows police entering the home and wrestling Rountree to the ground.
“Put your hand behind your back. We don’t want to hurt you,” an officer can be heard saying.
Rountree then became unresponsive, and officers and EMS began CPR. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
The AG’s investigation concluded that while Rountree died because of the physical altercations with police, because of the minimal use of force, criminal charges against police were not justified.
