RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — The family of Irvo Otieno, alongside the family’s lawyers Ben Crump Mark Krudys, were in Richmond on Tuesday evening to address the public after the video of Otieno’s final moments at Central State Hospital was released earlier in the day.
Otieno’s family, Crump, Krudys, Henrico County NAACP President Terrell Pollard and senior pastor Rev. Dwight C. Jones spoke at the First Baptist Church of South Richmond at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 21.
This press conference followed the public release of the video of Otieno’s death on Tuesday morning, as well as the news that a grand jury has formally indicted seven Henrico sheriff’s deputies and three employees of Central State Hospital in Otieno’s death.
The indictment came after charges were brought against them by Dinwiddie Commonwealth’s Attorney Ann Baskervill last week.
According to Krudys, Tuesday’s indictment is just the beginning of a very lengthy judicial process.
On March 6, 2023, 28-year-old Otieno died during the intake process to Central State Hospital in Dinwiddie while being accompanied by the Henrico County’s Sheriff’s Department.
In the video obtained by 8News on Tuesday morning, a handcuffed and shackled Otieno is pinned to the ground by deputies and hospital staff. He is on the ground for an estimated 12 minutes.
Once Otieno was motionless, hospital staff can be seen on video giving him an injection and chest compressions. When EMS arrived on scene, they gave Otieno more chest compressions and also used a defibrillator.
At 5:48 p.m. on March 6, just over an hour and a half after he was first brought to Central State, Otieno’s body was covered with a white sheet.
Crump called the actions of the deputies and hospital staff in the video “an overdose of excessive force.”
“Not for 8 minutes, not for 9 minutes, not for 10 minutes but over 11 minutes,” Crump said, referring to the amount of time Otieno was held down by deputies and hospital staff. “It’s just exhausting saying that.”
Caroline Ouko, Otieno’s mother, is still struggling to process what happened to her son.
“He was the peacemaker of my family…He had an infectious smile,” Ouko said on Tuesday. “Oh, I will miss his smile.”
Although it was a tough decision to make, the family says their choice to share this video with the public was necessary for transparency and so the world would understand their loss.
The Otieno family and their attorneys are now calling for justice following the release of the surveillance footage from Central State Hospital.
“Our governor, what you said about our family, if you really do empathize and you feel what we feel, do something. Let your state be an example for the rest of the country and for the rest of the world,” Leon Ochieng, Otieno’s brother, said.
“Justice for Irvo, Justice for Irvo, Justice for Irvo!” Crump added.
Otieno’s family and their lawyers previously spoke publicly on Thursday, March 16 after they first saw the video of Otieno’s final moments.
