Tyrone West

Less-than-lethal force

Along with a passenger, Tyrone West was pulled over on a traffic stop by two plainclothes officers in an unmarked car. On a pat-down officers discovered a small amount of cocaine. This caused West to react, and started an extended physical struggle among the three in which the officers accidentally pepper-sprayed themselves. Other police arrived and the beating of West continued after he'd been subdued and handcuffed in the prone position. He died at the scene. The first medical examination concluded West died from a heart condition. Two subsequent autopsies requested by the West family found he died from positional asphyxia caused by being restrained in the prone position. The family received a $400,000 settlement in the case.