(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . 4 years later. Elijah McClain's killers go to trial. [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-09-16 It’s been four painful years since Elijah McClain was rendered brain dead after 3 police officers in Aurora, Colorado took him down for “walking and singing while Black.” Having the audacity to wear a ski mask because the 23-year-old, 5’ 6” tall, 143 lb man was frequently cold, the three of them could take no chances with their own safety... and called for paramedics to assist. And so the five public servants together administered a lethal dose of the sedative ketamine, ending his life. Elijah’s cruel death in August of 2019 didn’t make much of a wave until a few months later when another Black man, George Floyd, was murdered by another gang of “public servants” in Minnesota in broad daylight, in front of witnesses and on video from many angles. ...in the spring and summer of 2020, Elijah McClain was added to the list of names echoed in chants around the country during a reckoning on police violence and racial justice amid a pandemic lockdown. Those protests sparked a host of police reform laws in states across the country — including Colorado. www.cpr.org/... And we in Colorado did not sit back. We were furious. We were inconsolable. Elijah McClain was a gentle, loving soul. The trial of the killers of George Floyd have come and gone. Four years have passed. Elijah’s killers walk free. (As do so many of the killers of unarmed Black men, women, and children.) Four years after his death — which left a gaping hole in his mother’s heart and sparked outrage over racial injustice in American policing — a trial for two of the officers was set to begin Friday with jury selection. Trials for a third officer and two paramedics are scheduled to start later this year. A jury will decide if officers Randy Roedema and Jason Rosenblatt are guilty of manslaughter, criminally negligent reckless homicide and assault charges in a trial expected to last about a month. They have pleaded not guilty but have never spoken publicly about the allegations against them. sahanjournal.com/... "Justice too long delayed is justice denied." MLK, JR. The Last Words of Elijah McClain: The text in the viral transcript has been slightly edited to remove repeated phrases and inaudible moments (McClain says "I'm just different" multiple times), but none of the edits are misleading. The text describing actions in the viral post — at one point noting that McClain was crying, at another noting that he vomited — are also accurate. This viral transcript does omit at least one phrase uttered by McClain during this encounter. A few moments after the final words of this viral transcript, McClain says "I can't fix myself" before vomiting again. www.snopes.com/... I hope that we continue to be invested in justice for Elijah. Four years is a long time to wait. Body camera footage from the officers played a major role in bringing to light what happened. And yet, the case against the officers is still “far from a slam dunk,” experts say. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/9/16/2193532/-4-years-later-Elijah-McClain-s-killers-go-to-trial Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/