LOS ANGELES — A D.C. teacher died in California hours after police stunned him several times with a taser.
Keenan Anderson, 31, of D.C., died on Jan. 3, according to Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore. He said Anderson passed away in a hospital a few hours after multiple LAPD officers tried to take him into custody at the site of a traffic accident.
Anderson, who worked as a teacher at the Digital Pioneers Academy in Southeast D.C., was in Los Angeles to visit family, according to the school.
Moore said, in two days, three people, including Anderson, died during LAPD use-of-force incidents in Los Angeles.
The chief said, during a press conference, Wednesday, his officers encountered Anderson at a busy Los Angeles intersection after a person claimed he had committed a hit-and-run with his car.
“The victim of that attempted crime would later tell officers that she believed Mr. Anderson was trying to steal her car,” Moore said.
He said officers then requested back-up at the scene because they believed Anderson was acting erratically.
Moore said Anderson eventually tried to resist officers’ attempts to take him into custody.
“The officers struggled on the ground with Mr. Anderson for several minutes,” he said. “Utilizing physical force and a taser device to help overcome his resistance.”
Moore said paramedics then took Anderson to a hospital in Santa Monica.
LAPD said Anderson would go into cardiac arrest four hours later before he was pronounced dead.
Body Camera Video
On Wednesday, LAPD released body camera video of its officers arresting Anderson.
In one clip, viewers can see an officer, on a motorcycle, meeting Anderson in the intersection.
"Somebody's trying to kill me, sir,” Anderson said.
The officer then orders Anderson to get out of the street. Anderson then kneels on the sidewalks as the officer radios for back-up.
The video, released by LAPD, then jumps seven minutes into the future.
Anderson asks for water before running off into the street.
After the officer gestures with his hand for Anderson to come back to the sidewalk, he gives chase on his motorcycle.
LAPD’s video then shows viewers another officer’s body camera video of Anderson’s arrest. In the newer vantage point, multiple officers are now shown on scene.
As Anderson is on the ground, one officer can be heard yelling an order.
“Stop it or I’m going to tase you,” the officer said.
An officer then proceeds to tase Anderson multiple times.
LAPD’s video then switches to yet another officer’s body camera footage where Anderson raises his voice.
"They're trying to George Floyd me,” he said.
At one point, an officer’s knee, on the pavement, can be seen touching Anderson’s collarbone.
The video also includes cellphone footage from a witness.
According to LAPD, the witness is an Uber driver who said he believed police were not abusing Anderson.
"I am Uber driver and he was trying to steal my car while he hit other cars right here,” the witness said.
Warning, the following police body camera video includes graphic images and my be difficult to watch.
“Four times in 33 seconds”
An officer activated his taser on Anderson six times in 42 seconds, according to Moore.
LAPD said the first two tasings occurred while the device was set to "probe mode." That mode involves the deployment of leashed darts.
Moore said the officer determined the first two tase attempts were ineffective in his efforts to subdue Anderson.
“He then did a series of ‘dry stuns’ where he places the device physically against the body of Mr. Anderson,” he said.
Moore claimed the officer then proceeded to dry stun Anderson four times in 33 seconds. He said each stun lasted about five seconds.
“In my preliminary review of this incident, it’s unclear what role the physical struggle with the officers and the use of the taser played in an unfortunate death,” Moore said.
However, he admitted multiple taser activations can have an adverse impact on a person’s cardiovascular system.
“Particularly if there’s underlying heart issues,” Moore said.
The chief added LAPD does not have a preset limit on the number of times an officer can use a taser during an encounter with a civilian.
“However, officers should generally avoid repeated or simultaneous activations to avoid potential injury to the subject,” Moore said.
“Our community is grieving”
While LAPD said Anderson was a Los Angeles resident, administrators at Digital Pioneers Academy said he taught 10th grade English for their institution in Southeast D.C.
The school, in a statement, detailed Anderson’s arrest as disturbing and tragic.
“Our community is grieving,” said Digital Pioneers Academy President & CEO Mashea Ashton. “But we’re also angry. Angry that, once again, a known, loved, and respected member of our community is no longer with us. Angry that another talented, beautiful black soul is gone too soon.”
She noted that Anderson, who had taught at Digital Pioneers Academy for less than six months, was the third member of the school community to die in the last 65 days.
Fourteen-year-old Antoine Manning and 15-year-old Jakhi Snider both died in separate shootings, in D.C., last fall.
“Our school community will inevitably ask some really important questions in the days and weeks ahead: How could the police have de-escalated this situation?” Ashton wrote. “How are we going to stop losing our black boys and men to violence? How do we grieve and move forward as a community?"
According to Ashton, Anderson also had a 6-year-old child.
In a press conference, Wednesday, in Los Angeles, Douglas Hicks Law, in association with the Ben Crump Law Firm, announced it has been retained to legally represent Anderson’s young daughter.
"Keenan Darnell Anderson was in the mix of an emotional trauma when he came into contact with these officers and in their efforts to handcuff him,” said attorney Carl Douglass. “They used clear force, which was excessive."
Douglas said he believed officers tased Anderson seven times after watching LAPD’s video.
"So, is it really any wonder that after seven times of being shocked with a taser, Mr. Anderson's heart could not withstand that trauma,” he said. “And, four-and-a-half hours later, he was pronounced dead."
Douglas also said Anderson was unarmed.
Dr. Melina Abdullah, a Black Lives Matter organizer, also spoke at the press conference. She was critical of the press conference organized by LAPD.
"After they stole these men's lives, they're now assassinating their characters," she said.
Black Lives Matter Co-Founder Patrisse Cullors posted on Instagram that Keenan Anderson was her cousin. She criticized the actions of LAPD officers too.
“Keenan deserves to be alive right now,” she said. “His child deserves to be raised by his father. Keenan we will fight for you and for all of our loved ones impacted by state violence.”
Cause of death
LAPD maintained during an hour-long press conference, Wednesday, that it was too early to tell what had caused Anderson’s death.
Moore said LAPD’s forensic toxicology department conducted a preliminary toxicology test and a screening of Anderson’s blood. The department claimed it ultimately discovered the presence of two drugs.
“Mr. Anderson’s specimens tested positive for cocaine and cannabis,” Moore said.
The Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office is expected to conduct their own independent toxicology investigation, according to LAPD.
“Although initial reports indicate narcotics consumption, more information is needed from the coroner’s office before cause of death can be determined,” Moore said.
He said, at this time, his department does not know if Anderson had any underlying medical conditions.