A 33-year-old man died hours after Phoenix police used force to get him handcuffed and arrest him, according to Sgt. Rob Scherer with the Phoenix Police Department.
Scherer said Turrell Dantae Clay was arrested for an outstanding felony warrant near Thomas Road and 39th Avenue on Jan. 10. Clay ran from officers with a gun and climbed onto the roof of a nearby home, Scherer said. Officers used less lethal tools when Clay wouldn’t come down from the roof and they struggled to handcuff him, according to Scherer.
Once Clay was down from the roof, officers used physical force during a struggle to get him handcuffed, Scherer confirmed.
Once in custody, officers called for paramedics to assess Clay. Scherer said that the Phoenix Fire Department released him before he left.
Clay then told officers he was having trouble breathing. Scherer reported that they drove him to the hospital. A private ambulance company then transferred him to a cardiac hospital for advanced care.
Doctors performed surgery, which Clay did not survive, Scherer said.
The Maricopa County Examiner’s Office will determine why Clay died, and detectives are launching a death investigation, according to Scherer.
Phoenix police will release a briefing video within the next two weeks as part of their transparency protocol, Scherer confirmed.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix PD: Man dies after having trouble breathing following arrest