Federal law enforcement authorities have taken the unusual step of confirming the existence of an ongoing investigation into the death of Elijah McClain in police custody last August. McClain was an unarmed Black man who died after police applied a chokehold to him in the Denver suburb of Aurora. Recordings of the incident released by police revealed that McClain said repeatedly that he could not breathe. The Justice Department’s civil rights division, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney for Colorado confirmed Tuesday that a federal probe into the death was launched last year, saying in a statement that the existence of an ongoing investigation is only confirmed when it is in “the best interest of the public and public safety.” The agencies said: “Recent attention on the death of Elijah McClain warrants such disclosure.” After McClain’s death, a local district attorney declined to file charges against cops or paramedics, citing an inconclusive autopsy.
