WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The recent deaths of detainees in US police custody seem to form a pattern that the authorities should properly investigate, advocacy group Columbus Cop Block spokesperson Valerie Petrichor told Sputnik on Tuesday.
The issue was brought to the public’s attention again on Sunday, after young African American woman, Ralkina Jones, was found dead in an Ohio jail cell after being arrested for getting into an altercation with her husband.
“I hate to see the public jump to conclusions based on auxiliary factors like race, but there does seem to be a pattern developing,” Petrichor said. “I think as with every death occurring when an individual is in police custody, all surveillance and records need to be checked.”
Jones’ death is the latest in a series of detainee deaths. On July 10, 2015, activist Sandra Bland was arrested for allegedly confronting a Texas state trooper. Three days later she was found dead in her cell after allegedly hanging herself with a garbage bag.
Similarly, Jones’ sister Renee Ashford reportedly said Jones was fine when she visited her sister in prison on Saturday night.
On July 14, 2015, Native American Rexdale Henry was also found dead in his prison cell in Mississippi for unknown reasons. Henry, a member of the Choctaw tribe, was previously arrested for not paying a traffic fine.
The United States saw a wave of protests after 25-year-old African-American Freddie Gray died of a spinal cord injury while in police custody in Baltimore.
Six police officers have been charged in connection with Gray’s death, all have pleaded not guilty.
According to the latest US government prison data, 4,309 inmates in local jails or state prisons died in 2012. Health issues remained the number one cause of death in state jails, but suicide is the leading cause of death in local jails. About one-third of suicide deaths in local jails occurred within seven days of being arrested.
“Right now, an independence group of attorneys has been asked to investigate this case, but we think it should be investigated at the highest level, the level of the attorney general,” Benjamin said.
Benjamin explained that the US criminal justice system needs to prove its fairness at a time when many African-Americans have died at the hands of police.
“The [US] youth have lost confidence in both the police forces and the courts, we need structural changes to bring justice back into the justice system,” Benjamin added.
Medea Benjamin also told Sputnik that the United States should keep records of all instances of police using force in order to identify and protect citizens from police violence.
“We need a national database on police use of force, because without it we have incomplete data and federal action that does not meet the needs of the people who are suffering most at the hands of this violence,” Benjamin said.
Benjamin argued that a sure way to redress the situation is to make police in the United States practice law enforcement in a more transparent manner. She suggested establishing a system where citizens will be able to review police officers’ actions.
“The federal government needs to set a standard of accountability,” Benjamin said.
CODEPINK is an anti-war movement formed in 2002, shortly before the US military intervention in Iraq. The movement has also expressed opinions on issues of social justice.
