Rev. Al Sharpton and Ben Crump speak at funeral for Ohio man who died last month while in police custody
(NEW YORK) — Funeral services were held Wednesday for a 53-year-old man who died after being detained by police in Ohio last month. Frank Tyson’s hands were cuffed behind his back, and he was placed on his stomach at a social establishment in Canton.
Rev. Al Sharpton and civil rights attorney Ben Crump spoke at Tyson’s memorial at the Hear the Word Ministries church. Tyson died on April 18 after police body camera video captured him saying “I can’t breathe” multiple times as he was detained by police and forced to the floor of the AMVETS club.
“What does that say to everyone in here? That you can do this to us,” Sharpton said during the eulogy. “You see us all as expendable. And we come to tell you that Frank mattered to us, his life had value to us, and we are going to stand up for the sanctity of Frank Tyson’s life.”
Canton police responded to a call about a car accident where a vehicle was driven into an electric pole near the AMVETS establishment. Officers found Tyson inside the club and were immediately asked by a woman who let them in to take Tyson out of the bar, according to body camera footage obtained by ABC News.
“Eric Garner said, ‘I can’t breathe,’ and they ignored him. And then George Floyd said, ‘I can’t breathe,’ and they told him, ‘Well, if you talking, you can breathe,'” Crump said. “And then we come to Frank Tyson of Canton, Ohio, who says, ‘I can’t breathe,’ And it gets even worse because the police officer says ‘shut the F up.'”
The video shows officers immediately approach Tyson as he appears to resist, and a struggle ensues. One of the officers placed a knee on Tyson’s back. Approximately five minutes later, an officer checked Tyson’s pulse. Soon after, police began to perform CPR. He was taken Aultman Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 9:19 p.m.local time, according to police.
The Ohio Attorney General’s Office told ABC News that its Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) unit will refer the investigation of Tyson’s death to the attorney general once it is complete.
“BCI was requested by the Stark County Sheriff’s Office on April 18 to investigate a fatal officer-involved critical incident that occurred involving officers from the Canton Police Department,” the Attorney General’s Office told ABC News in a statement.
The Canton Police Department told ABC News they have no further statements due to the open investigation by BCI. However, they did give a statement on April 24, the same day they released the body camera footage.
“The location of the crash, which resulted in the dispatch of Canton police officers, was at the east limits of the city of Canton,” police said in part in a statement to ABC News. “Mr. Tyson, the driver of the vehicle, then traveled on foot to the AMVETS establishment located in Canton Township. Prior to officers contacting Mr. Tyson, two 911 calls were made from location to the Stark County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch Center (STARCOM).”
The Stark County Ohio Coroner’s Department did not return ABC News request for a statement regarding Tyson’s cause of death. The local police union did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for a comment.
“The Tyson family will always have my deepest sympathy,” Canton Mayor William V. Sherer II told ABC News in a statement. “Although I am unable to speak about Mr. Tyson specifically, given the pending BCI investigation, my team and I have already met with local leaders from the NAACP and the Greater Stark County Urban League. I am committed and confident in our ability to get through this challenging time together as a community.”
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