Tasered Latino Vet's Cause Of Death Ruled "Undetermined"
PHOENIX — Medical examiners in Maricopa County, Arizona are ruling the death of Ernest "Marty" Atencio "undetermined."
The Latino veteran died last December after being subdued and Tasered in a Maricopa County jail. The incident happened just after the Department of Justice announced the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office engages in a "practice of discriminatory policing of Latinos."
Atencio's altercation with detention officers from the sheriff's office and Phoenix police last December was caught on tape.
Atencio was arrested for assault, then taken to a county jail where video footage shows one officer putting Atencio in a chokehold, then wrestling him to the ground. More officers pile on top, and a sheriff's officer then tases Atencio.
Medical examiners concluded Atencio died of complications of cardiac arrest, but the cause of death is still undetermined.
County officials declined comment, but the lawyer for Atencio's family, Michael Manning, said he believes the cardiac arrest has something to do with the way Atencio was subdued by officers. He said he is filing a notice of claim within the next 10 days, alerting the county that a lawsuit will soon follow.
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