The mother of Washington, D.C. man Alonzo Smith — who died in police custody Nov. 1, 2015 — wants the names of the officers involved released.
On that day, police responded to a confrontation between Smith and security guards at around 4 a.m. at his apartment complex.
In an exclusive interview with RT, the 27-year-old teaching assistant’s mother, Beverly Smith, tells reporters that it has been 10 months since her son’s death.
Since then, police have not released the names of the officers nor provided details of the arrest.
“The hardest part of this … is the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. attorney’s office are conspiring together and refusing to release the two names of the officers who murdered my son,” Smith tells RT. “It has been 10 months now. I have not heard anything from anyone concerning my son’s case … Only that it is still under investigation.”
The MPD reportedly hired security guards because of their fledgling numbers. These guards have the power to make arrests and are armed.
According to RT, there is video of officers administering CPR to the man while he was in their custody.
However, their efforts to save him were futile.
In December, Alonzo Smith’s death was ruled a homicide due to “sudden cardiac arrest acute cocaine toxicity while restrained.”
“What that does is it compels me to fight, to be his voice, to fight every day for his justice,” Smith adds. “It also compels me to become an activist against police brutality.”
