Rare conviction against paramedics: 2 found guilty in Elijah McClain's 2019 death

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In a significant development related to the 2019 death of Elijah McClain, paramedics Jeremy Cooper and Lt. Peter Cichuniec of the Aurora Fire Department were found guilty of criminally negligent homicide after a lengthy trial. Elijah McClain had died after being stopped by Aurora, Colorado, police and injected with the powerful sedative ketamine by the emergency medical services workers. The jury also found Cichuniec guilty on one of two second-degree assault charges, while Cooper was found not guilty on the assault charges. This verdict follows the recent trial outcomes for police officers involved in the incident, highlighting the rare occurrence of such legal actions against paramedics.

Elijah McClain, a 23-year-old massage therapist, was walking home from a store on August 24, 2019, when he was stopped by police in Aurora, Colorado. Despite being unarmed and not accused of any crime, a 911 caller had reported a man who seemed "sketchy." Upon the police's arrival, three officers quickly restrained McClain, pinning him to the ground and using a carotid artery chokehold, which has since been banned. Subsequently, paramedics injected McClain with the sedative ketamine, leading to his death. The incident sparked outrage and protests, drawing attention to issues of police brutality and the use of excessive force.

During the trial, video footage played for jurors showed that Cooper and Cichuniec told detectives that Elijah McClain was actively resisting officers, which contradicted the body camera footage of the encounter. The paramedics also claimed that McClain was suffering from a disputed condition called "excited delirium," a term not recognized by many major medical groups and associated with racial bias against Black men. Jeremy Cooper injected McClain with 500 milligrams of ketamine, an amount that exceeded the recommended dosage for McClain's weight, according to the indictment.

Elijah McClain died days later due to "complications of ketamine administration following forcible restraint," as stated in an amended autopsy report released last year. His death gained heightened attention in the wake of George Floyd's murder in 2020, sparking nationwide concern over the use of sedatives during police encounters. In 2021, the city reached a $15 million settlement in a federal civil rights lawsuit filed by McClain's parents.

In Elijah McClain's case, Aurora police officer Randy Roedema, 41, has been convicted of criminally negligent homicide and third-degree assault. Roedema faces sentencing in January, with potential punishment ranging from probation to prison time. However, two other officers, Jason Rosenblatt, 34, and Nathan Woodyard, were acquitted of all charges. Rosenblatt had been dismissed from the police department in 2020 due to a photo reenacting McClain's death. Woodyard, on the other hand, returned to the Aurora Police Department after his acquittal and is set to receive over $212,000 in back pay.

Following his acquittal, Nathan Woodyard will be placed on "restricted duty" while undergoing training on changes made to the Aurora Police Department since his suspension in 2021. The city agreed to implement reforms after a 2021 civil rights investigation revealed violations of state and federal law, including racially biased policing, excessive use of force, failure to record community interactions, and unlawfully administering ketamine. This month, the Colorado Police Officer Training and Standards board unanimously decided to eliminate "excited delirium" from the state training curriculum.