Death of Black man seen on video pinned by hotel workers prompts calls for arrests
People gathered outside the Milwaukee District Attorney's Office on Monday to demand charges be filed against four hotel workers involved in the death of a Black man that was ruled a homicide.
“D.A. Chisholm, all we want you to do is your job, that’s all we want,” Naisha Mitchell, D’Vontaye Mitchell’s sister, said during the morning rally.
“You told us you were waiting on the autopsy results before you made your next move. Those results came back last week. In my opinion, you should have been at these people’s houses the same day they came out,” she continued.
The demands come days after the Milwaukee County medical examiner ruled Mitchell’s death was a homicide, the result of restraint asphyxia and toxic effects of cocaine and methamphetamine.
“The medical examiner's report confirms the obvious here, which was that, you know, D'Vontaye Mitchell was murdered outside of the Hyatt Hotel in Milwaukee by Aimbridge Hospitality employees,” William Sulton, one of the attorneys representing Mitchell’s family, told ABC News.
On Friday, Sulton released newly obtained surveillance video that showed the moments leading up to Mitchell’s death.
“It broke my heart. I didn't know what to feel. I didn't know how to feel. If it broke something inside of me because it was so brutal and just what they did to him. It's unbelievable,” DeAsia Harmon, Mitchell’s wife, told ABC News in an interview after seeing the surveillance videos.
On June 30, Mitchell, 43, showed up to the Milwaukee Hyatt Regency hotel acting frantically, running into the hotel’s gift shop and women’s bathroom, surveillance video showed. Mitchell’s family has said he was having a mental health episode.
The newly released surveillance video shows one hotel worker dragging Mitchell through the lobby doors before another worker joins him and starts punching Mitchell while he is still on the ground. A hotel employee then grabs a broom and starts striking Mitchell. The hotel workers then continue to punch Mitchell before he is pinned to the ground for more than eight minutes, the video, reviewed by ABC News, shows.
“What these videos demonstrate is that he was brutally beaten to death,” Sulton said, adding Mitchell’s family expects the District Attorney’s Office will now charge the hotel workers.
“We were fortunate in this case to have onlookers who had cell phone video footage, which allowed us to prove that Mr. Mitchell was murdered,” Sulton said, adding that “there are still items that need to be investigated. There's still evidence that needs to be collected.”
On July 12, the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) released a statement saying they had initiated a death investigation the day of the incident, referring felony murder charges with the underlying charge of battery to the District Attorney's Office on July 5. MPD said the investigation was ongoing and declined further comment.
Aimbridge Hospitality, the hotel management firm that employed the workers, told ABC News in a new statement they had terminated the employees after reviewing their actions, which were in violation of their policies and procedures. The hotel workers involved in the incident have not been identified.
“We are continuing to do everything we can to support law enforcement with their ongoing investigation of this tragedy, and will continue our own investigation,” Aimbridge Hospitality said in the statement
Harmon, Mitchell’s wife, said she was devastated to learn the circumstances of her husband’s death. “I didn't know what to think. I didn't know what to feel. I just knew that a part of me was going. A part of me was gone. My daughter just lost her father. And it's still not real to me,” Harmon said.
“He was a gentle giant. He was loving and caring, and he was smart and funny and very talented. He was a wonderful father, wonderful husband, great friend, brother, cousin, son, all across the board. Everybody who's ever come in contact with him loved him,” Harmon said.
The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
“I want the law to actually mean something. I want his life to mean something. It meant something to me. It meant something to my daughter. It meant something to his entire family. So for me, I want everyone involved, everyone involved to go to jail,” Harmon said.
Editor's note: This story has been updated.
