In the western US state of Colorado, former police officer Randy Roedema has been sentenced to 14 months in jail for his involvement in the 2019 killing of Elijah McClain. In a joint trial, Roedema was found guilty of criminally negligent homicide and third-degree assault, while his colleague Jason Rosenblatt was acquitted.
The incident occurred when police, responding to a 911 call, confronted 23-year-old McClain, who was dressed in a winter coat and ski mask on a warm night. McClain, who was not suspected of any crime, was restrained by police and injected with a powerful sedative by paramedics, leading to his death.
During the sentencing, McClain’s mother condemned Roedema, stating that “Randy Roedema stole my son’s life” and calling the sentence “a slap on the wrist”. She believes that the apologies offered by Roedema cannot erase the blood on his hands.
Following global protests sparked by the killing of George Floyd, Colorado Governor Jared Polis requested an investigation into McClain’s case. As a result, a state grand jury indicted the officers and paramedics in 2021. Last month, the paramedics were convicted of criminally negligent homicide for injecting McClain with an overdose of ketamine.
Initially, local prosecutors declined to file charges in McClain’s killing, but with renewed attention to the case, justice is finally being served.