PHOENIX — Despite paying a combined $4.8 million to settle a wrongful-death lawsuit, the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and Phoenix Police Department disciplined zero officers for leaving a handcuffed man facedown, motionless, and dying in a jail cell.
Internal investigation files from both law enforcement agencies show they blamed each other for Akeem Terrell’s death and found their respective officers’ actions in policy.
DEAD WRONG: ABC15 investigates Akeem Terrell’s in-custody death
In a written statement, MCSO said, “Our Professional Standards Bureau found no policy violations by detention officers, and the County Attorney’s Office confirmed no criminal wrongdoing… We do not take these matters lightly, and we understand the profound impact of this tragedy on both Terrell’s family and our detention officers.”
Phoenix also sent a statement.
The statement did not address specific questions about the quality of Phoenix’s internal investigation, but it expressed “continued condolences to family and friends who lost a loved one in this case.”
On January 1, 2021, Akeem Terrell, who was in the throes of a mental health crisis and picked up for trespassing, died after he was placed and left in a prone position while handcuffed by Phoenix police and Maricopa County Sheriff’s detention officers.
For three minutes, the officers were kneeling on top of Terrell, whose head and neck were pushed up against the wall.
After the cuffs were switched, the officers got up and backed out of the room.
Terrell clearly unresponsive and motionless when the officers left, according to jail surveillance video. Several times officers peered into the cell through a window, but no one would go in to check on him for more than five minutes.
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Phoenix settled their portion of the lawsuit in September for $800,000. Maricopa County settled for $4 million in November.
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In dueling internal investigations, Phoenix and MCSO officials both denied having custody of Terrell.
At the beginning of the lawsuit, an independent expert essentially predicted this outcome when asked by ABC15 to provide insight on the case.
“They could have been looking at each other as being responsible for his well-being,” said Dr. Keith Taylor, a former NYPD supervisor who now teaches at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. “So, the fact that no one was assigned to check that he was still alive and he still has a pulse, may speak to this idea that he was everyone’s responsibility and no one’s responsibility.”
That matches the findings in the agencies’ separate investigations.
MCSO claimed Phoenix had not completed Terrell’s booking paperwork so he wasn’t their responsibility yet.
“It was understood by MSCO detention staff that Terrell was the responsibility of the PPD; and with that, how Terrell was placed/restrained was not, technically, their concern,” according to sheriff’s office investigation.
In Phoenix’s report, an investigator wrote, “Once the (cell) door is closed, only the MCSO staff can open it… Phoenix Police Department personnel were not issued a key card for that door and could not access the (cell).”
After the incident, a sheriff’s office spokesperson said MCSO enhanced training and provided access to cells for all uniformed officers stationed in the jail.
Neither agency found any issues with their officers’ use of force or for placing and leaving Terrell in the “prone” position, which is well-documented because of the danger.
“While MCSO’s (policy) stated that employees shall avoid placing subjects on their stomachs for an extended period of time, the policy did not disallow the placement,” MCSO’s investigation found.
The sheriff’s office’s report also concluded, “The video footage associated with this incident does not look good; however, the force that was used during the incident, by all parties involved, was not typical force that would lead to death.”
RELATED: Sheriff Paul Penzone admits officers made mistakes in jail death
Unlike MCSO’s report, Phoenix’s internal investigation into Terrell’s death did not include an analysis of the officers’ force and didn’t list any specific allegations that were investigated.
Phoenix’s internal investigators also did not appear to obtain or review jail surveillance of the incident and instead relied on officers’ interviews.
Back when ABC15 interviewed Dr. Taylor, he said the case “screamed” for further scrutiny especially since MCSO was under court oversight for systemic problems and Phoenix police was under Department of Justice investigation.
“It looked like willful ignorance of that status of the individual’s health,” Taylor said. “He was laying unconscious, prone, with possibly no signs of life and they walked out as if it was a normal interaction.”
He added, “It’s hard to argue that they did not leave him to die.”
FULL STATEMENT FROM THE MARICOPA COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE:
“Recently, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors settled a lawsuit filed by Akeem Terrell’s family. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office thoroughly investigated the 2021 death of inmate Akeem Terrell. Our Professional Standards Bureau found no policy violations by detention officers, and the County Attorney’s Office confirmed no criminal wrongdoing. MCSO enhanced training relative to holding cells as well as physical improvements to the ITR facility allowing access into holding cells by all uniformed officers from other agencies. We do not take these matters lightly, and we understand the profound impact of this tragedy on both Terrell’s family and our detention officers, who work tirelessly to ensure the safety of all inmates. We extend our sympathies to those grieving this loss, and remain committed to learning and improving wherever possible.”
Contact ABC15 Chief Investigator Dave Biscobing at Dave@ABC15.com.
