© NBC
The Dallas County Medical Examiner ruled that the death of a man who was pinned down by three deputies in a Texas jail lobby was a homicide. Other contributing factors to his death were drugs, heart problems and stress to the body.
The cause and manner of death of Joseph Hutcheson, 48, was homicide with "combined effects of cocaine and methamphetamine, compounded by hypertensive cardiovascular disease and
physiologic stress associated with struggle and restraint," according to the medical examiner's office.
A full autopsy report is pending but it will include toxicology results.
Scott Palmer, an attorney for Hutcheson's family, said the medical examiner's findings corroborate what the video shows: that deputies were responsible on some level for the man's death.
"It is apparent from the ruling that Mr. Hutcheson died at the hands of another," Palmer said in a statement,
according to The
Dallas Morning News. "We believe without the assault by the Sheriff's deputies, Mr. Hutcheson would still be alive today."
Palmer told the paper that the family hired a private pathologist to conduct a second autopsy. The doctor couldn't determine what had killed Hutcheson, but told the family that the organs in his throat were missing.
Hutcheson died on August 1 after a struggle with three deputies on the lobby floor. Authorities said the man walked into the building that morning, yelled for help, was placed in handcuffs, lost consciousness and died.
Comment: Hopefully other states will follow the example set, because the way that most veterans are treated in this country is truly inhumane. This treatment demonstrates quite clearly that the U.S. government, despite its proclamations in support of the troops, cares very little for those who have given everything for the country.