A civil rights attorney who represented the family of George Floyd is in New Haven Friday with the family of a man who was seriously injured while being transported by New Haven police. He and the family held a news conference this morning and plan to take part in a march this evening.
Five officers have since been placed on leave.
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Cox is partially paralyzed and attorney Ben Crump said last month that Cox could hardly move anything from his chest down and was communicating by blinking his eyes and moving his head.
Attorneys and Cox's family said Friday that he cannot speak and cannot eat.
"From what we see on that video, it is clearly a violation of his civil rights," Crump said. "They violated his rights under the Fourth Amendment, the Eighth Amendment and the 14th amendment. They had deliberate indifference to his medical care."
On Thursday, officials in New Haven announced changes in the policy for transporting people in police custody. The new policy will require immediate medical intervention when a person in custody requests it.
“Seeing Mr. Cox in his condition really brings home why it’s so important for us to take action to correct what happened,” New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker said.
“As the chief, I want my officers to know, yes, you can make mistakes, but you can’t treat people inhumanely,” the newly sworn-in police chief, Karl Jacobson, said.
Crump and Cox’s family held a news conference at 11 a.m. and will meet with the Department of Justice, according to a news release from Crump’s office.
The family said they want the officers involved to be fired and charged in connection with Cox's injuries. When asked about that, Elicker said it's too early right now to talk about termination. He said there's a criminal investigation underway and an internal investigation to follow, and he's confident the officers will be held accountable.
A march will be held Friday evening at 5 p.m. from Stetson Library at 197 Dixwell Ave. in New Haven.
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