Jury Acquits Officer Nathan Woodyard in Elijah McClain Death Case
- Aurora, Colo., police officer Nathan Woodyard has been cleared of all charges related to Elijah McClain’s 2019 death. McClain, a 23-year-old Black man, was placed in a carotid hold by Woodyard while he was being arrested. McClain was not armed and was walking home from a convenience store when he was apprehended. He never regained consciousness after the arrest and was taken off life support three days later.
- An initial autopsy released several months after McClain’s death listed his cause and manner of death as “undetermined.” An amended autopsy report filed in 2021 attributed McClain’s death to “complications of ketamine administration following forceful restraint.” The manner of death, such as accident, homicide, or suicide, remains undetermined.
- Since McClain’s death, Colorado has banned police chokeholds and limited the use of ketamine by paramedics during arrests. In late 2021, the city settled a civil rights lawsuit with McClain’s family for $15 million, the largest settlement in Colorado’s history.
Aurora officer acquitted in Elijah McClain case, fueling conversation on police use of force
Nathan Woodyard, a police officer from Aurora, Colo., was acquitted of all charges in the 2019 case of Elijah McClain’s death. The high-profile case gained national attention as part of the outcry over George Floyd’s murder in 2020, contributing to widespread demonstrations criticizing police force against Black Americans.
Woodyard, 34, faced charges of criminally negligent homicide and reckless manslaughter after applying a carotid hold on McClain, 23, during an attempted arrest. McClain was returning from a convenience store when a 911 call described him as “sketchy.” Despite a common medical condition that caused him to wear a ski mask and being unarmed, police tackled and restrained him. McClain, incapacitated by a carotid hold and a ketamine injection by paramedics, never regained consciousness, leading to his removal from life support three days later.
Although an initial autopsy marked McClain’s cause and manner of death as “undetermined,” an amended autopsy report filed in 2021 stated his death resulted from “complications of ketamine administration following forceful restraint.”
Despite Woodyard’s defense describing it as a “difficult case,” Colorado Attorney General Philip Weiser remains committed to “pursuit of accountability and justice for Elijah McClain and his family and friends.” He emphasized the importance of reducing “the unlawful and unnecessary use of force that can result in people dying at the hands of law enforcement.”
Woodyard is the second police officer acquitted in McClain’s death. Meanwhile, Aurora Fire Rescue paramedics Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec face trial this year. McClain’s death garnered nationwide attention in 2020, amidst increasing scrutiny on Black individuals’ deaths after encounters with law enforcement, such as Breonna Taylor in Louisville and Ahmaud Arbery in suburban Georgia.
In response to McClain’s death, Colorado banned police chokeholds and limited the use of ketamine by paramedics during arrests. Furthermore, a civil rights lawsuit with McClain’s family was settled in 2021 for $15 million – Colorado’s largest settlement to date.
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