-You a tough guy.
You a tough guy, huh?
-What's wrong with you?
-He's a tough guy.
He's not even resisting arrest,
bro.
-His whole nose is--
-He ain't doing nothing.
-The parallels are impossible
to ignore --
a Black man restrained
by police,
one with a knee on his back,
the other on his neck,
both unable to breathe.
This is not George Floyd's
story, though.
This is the story
of what happened to David Smith.
Ten years ago, Smith died
in the same city as Floyd
after an encounter with officers
from the same police department.
But unlike Floyd,
there was no public outcry,
no chants of Smith's name,
and neither officers
were criminally charged
nor disciplined.
In a statement
to The Washington Post,
a Minneapolis Police Department
spokesman said,
"The officers tired to save
Mr Smith once
they realized
the peril he was facing."
And that "If mistakes were made,
they were done
so under the standard
law-enforcement practices
and training at the time."
-They're trained officers,
and they killed him.
How could that be possible?
-The Post examined several hours
of footage from the scene
and a dozen depositions
with officers
from the Minneapolis
Police Department.
What emerges from these records
is a rare,
detailed look at how the
Minneapolis Police Department
investigated itself a decade ago
when a civilian died
in police custody --
a death that eerily parallels
what happened to Floyd
a decade later.
-It leaves you at a loss
for words.
I mean, it's the same
police department
within the same decade
killing two people
in a highly similar,
horrendous fashion.
That just should not happen.
-Ten years ago, this building
was the downtown YMCA
in Minneapolis.
It's here on the sixth floor
where David Smith had
a fatal encounter with police.
One of seven children raised
by a single mother in Illinois,
Smith moved to Minnesota,
where he participated
in Job Corps
and stayed to pursue
community college.
-He was a good guy.
He thought he could go to school
and make something
amazing of himself.
He called home and came home
and told us
all about his adventures,
and everybody was all excited
thinking he's gonna come home
and start a business,
and everybody's
gonna be a part of it.
And that's just not
our reality anymore.
-But Smith was also struggling
with mental illness,
and it became more acute in the
months leading up to his death.
He became a member at the YMCA
to cope with his anxiety.
On September 9th, 2010,
Smith went to the "Y"
to play basketball.
Before this day, he had several
encounters with people
who said he seemed unstable.
A couple of hours into shooting
hoops by himself,
Smith had an encounter
with a juvenile on the court.
A teenage boy said Smith was
following him around the court
and making him uncomfortable.
A supervisor intervened,
calling 911.
-911.
-We have a gentleman
in the building.
He doesn't know who he is.
He doesn't know his name.
He doesn't know my name.
And we need to get this
gentleman out of our building.
-What happened next was captured
from three different
camera angles --
the YMCA security camera,
a Taser camera,
and one of the officer's
personal recording device,
a pen camera.
The time codes on all three
cameras are incorrect,
but The Post was able to
calculate the approximate time
codes based off documents
in the lawsuit.
The entire encounter,
from start to finish,
lasts less than half an hour.
Shortly after arriving
around 4:00 PM,
officers Timothy Callahan
and Timothy Gorman
approach Smith
and try to speak to him.
In later depositions, the two
officers involved
recounted the struggle
for the Smith family lawyers.
-What was David Smith doing
when you first laid eyes on him?
-Digging through a backpack
or a bag or something.
-So, he wasn't doing
anything criminal?
-No.
-You saw the YMCA tape.
You're the first officer
to lay hands on him, correct?
-That's correct.
He kind of stopped
and turned towards us, I guess.
And in my mind, he was moving
toward the small kids
that were playing basketball.
-Gorman places his hand
on Smith's right arm,
and Callahan
quickly follows suit.
-Smith fights to get out
of their grasp,
causing both officers
to grab onto him
and try to escort him
to the other side of the court.
It's at this point
that the struggle escalates.
Officer Callahan's personal pen
camera turns on around 4:06 PM
and begins to record
the encounter.
Nine seconds into the pen-camera
recording,
Callahan asks Gorman whether
or not he should Tase Smith.
-Should we Tase him?
-Yeah.
-I've never done it before.
-Stop, alright?
-Smith breaks free and tries
to run away.
Callahan immediately shoots
the first probe at him
23 seconds into the pen-camera
recording, bringing Smith down.
-Get down on the ground now.
I'll Tase you again.
I'll Tase you again.
-It's here, according to
Callahan,
that Smith punches him.
According to the Taser log,
Callahan fires a second,
third, fourth,
fifth time in rapid succession,
all within 29 seconds
of each other.
-Aah!
-Tase you again.
-Aah!
-Both officers turn Smith
onto his stomach.
-Aah!
-One minute and 15 seconds
into the recording,
Gorman places his knee
on Smith's back
while handcuffing him.
Callahan
is straddling Smith's legs.
-Punched me in the face.
-I know.
Now we go assault 4.
-Squad 110.
-Squad 110.
-Did Smith ever attempt
to rise up?
-He was moving his head.
And I didn't know
if that was an attempt
to turn on his side or whatever.
-Did you recognize it might be
an attempt to breathe?
-I didn't think of that
once, sir.
-You didn't?
-We need a supervisor
to our location.
-One minute and 32 seconds
into the pen-camera recording,
Callahan calls for a supervisor
and later an ambulance.
Two minutes and 37 seconds
into the recording,
Smith begins to do
what the medical examiner refers
to as agonal breathing.
-[groaning]
-According to medical experts,
agonal breathing occurs when a
person is struggling to breathe.
-I can't believe he punched me
in the face.
-Yeah, he did.
-I got that all on here, too.
-Good.
-Do you recall the noises
that he made, the one,
the yelling and moaning part
early on and then the,
what they call the sonorous
or agonal breathing later on?
Do you recall those noises?
-I didn't remember being aware
of it
at the time of the incident.
In the videos after that time,
I was made aware of it, yes.
-You mean you didn't consciously
pay attention
to what sounds he was making?
Is that what you're saying?
-I wasn't even aware of --
that I would want to be
listening to them.
I wasn't aware that
he was in distress.
-Well, didn't that agonal
breathing cause you
to be worried somewhat?
-I wasn't familiar with what
the agonal breathing was.
-Regardless of what it was,
let's call it whatever
that sound was,
that didn't concern you?
That sound?
-No.
The sound didn't.
I wasn't aware of what it was.
-No one checked Smith's
breathing
for a period of several minutes
after he was handcuffed,
correct?
-I didn't think
it was necessary.
He was yelling and screaming.
That indicated to me
that he was breathing.
-Three minutes after the pen
camera starts recording,
Gorman speaks directly to Smith.
-Dave -- what are you on, man?
What are you on, Dave?
Dave.
Dave, what are you on, man?
-Smith never responds.
-You going to talk to us, bro?
Dave, you going to talk to us?
What's wrong with you?
-Let me see if I can get it.
-What's the police purpose
for keeping your knee
on his back at that point?
-I wasn't aware that he was
struggling so,
I was unsure if he was gonna
end up getting up again.
-Really?
-I was unaware that he was
struggling physically.
-Five minutes and 41 seconds
into the recording,
Callahan asks Gorman whether
or not Smith is still breathing.
-Is he breathing?
-But neither move to check,
instead continuing to speak
to only one another.
-My jaw hurts on this side.
-The whole right side
of your face is all red.
-Ohh, mother--
-Is there any manifestation
in the audio or visual evidence
that you've seen that indicates
that you had any concern
for Mr Smith's welfare at all?
-I think there was one point
where I said, "Is he breathing?"
-Right.
That's the first manifestation?
-I think so.
It wasn't a serious question.
-Alright.
Why wasn't it
a serious question?
-Because he just wasn't
responding to us
or talking to us,
so I just made a comment,
"Is he breathing?"
But I wasn't concerned
whether he was really breathing.
-Well, if a person
is non-responsive,
that's a problem, isn't it?
-People are non-responsive
all the time.
They don't talk to us
when they don't want to.
-And they don't talk to you
if they're unconscious.
-That's argumentative.
-No.
-And only a few of them talk
to you while they're dead.
-Both remain on top of Smith
and make no moves to confirm
whether or not
he is still breathing.
-I can't bite down.
Mother-- you better not have
broke my jaw.
-Smith is still unresponsive.
-And you say,
"I can't bite down.
Motherf--r, you better not have
broke my f--ing jaw."
You're referring to David Smith
as the mother--
there?
-Yes.
-During this interlude
when you're having
this discussion,
did you do anything to check
and see if David Smith
was breathing?
-No.
-If he had a pulse?
-I don't recall.
-Did you care
if he was breathing
or had a pulse at that time?
-I assumed that he was breathing
and had a pulse.
-That isn't the question.
-Did I care?
-Yeah.
-Yes, I cared.
-Did you do anything physically
to manifest that care,
that shows --
that's evidence of any care
about whether he had
a pulse or breathing?
-I did not because
I thought he was.
-Okay.
-It's around 7 minutes and 50
seconds into the recording
when Callahan checks
Smith's pulse.
-Gorman --
Gorman, dude,
I don't think he's breathing.
I don't get no pulse.
-Callahan starts chest
compressions 44 seconds
after checking
Smith's pulse.
He continues administering
CPR until EMS arrives 10 minutes
and 53 seconds after he first
called for an ambulance.
They take over trying
to resuscitate Smith.
Callahan calls his wife
around 4:26 PM,
26 minutes after he and Gorman
first arrived to the YMCA.
-Hey, I ain't gonna be home
for a while.
Something bad happened.
I can't talk about it right now.
Yeah.
I'm not hurt --
Yeah, I'm not hurt but, I think
me and Jimi killed a guy.
Yep!
I'll call you when
I get a chance.
Bye.
-You believed in your heart
of hearts
when you told your wife
that you and Jimi killed a guy
that he was dead,
though, correct?
-No, I said I thought
that could be the case.
And I didn't believe
that at the time that we --
the way that you're using
the word "killed."
-Did you believe that Jim,
that you had killed David Smith?
-I didn't believe so, no, sir.
-Why did you think he died?
-I wasn't sure at that point.
-Smith was brought to
Hennepin County Medical Center,
where he lay in a coma
for a week
before passing away
on September 17th.
According to
the medical examiner,
the cause of death
was mechanical asphyxiation.
In the days after, the
Minneapolis Police Department
promised to do a thorough
internal investigation
through the Homicide
and Internal Affairs Units.
But early police accounts
portrayed Smith's death
as Taser-related.
There was no mention
of any restraint hold.
It wasn't until a year
after Smith's death
and after the grand jury
declined to indict
in the case that Smith's family
learned of the pen-camera video.
-I can still see the green paint
on my office wall
as I watch the video.
It's like everything
was so far away.
You pinned him down.
You put your knee on top of him!
And you don't even check to see
if he's okay?
Who does that?
Who does that?
-The family filed a lawsuit,
alleging that both officers
had violated a police-department
policy on restraining subjects.
In response to the lawsuit,
the city said officers
did not
violate any department policies.
It also denied that Smith died
of mechanical asphyxia
and hired medical experts
who cited the excess levels
of cough suppressant
and antihistamines in his system
and heart problems
as contributors to his death.
In subsequent depositions
with Callahan and Gorman,
both deny that they had failed
to follow
any training protocols.
-If you had moved Smith
to his side
after he was handcuffed,
calmed down,
not resisting, given up,
or complying, that would
have been in accordance
with your training policy
in case law
that you're taught, correct?
-No.
-Okay.
Would it have been reasonable?
-If we had thought
he was in distress,
it might have been reasonable.
-But high-ranking officials
acknowledged in the depositions
that the officers had, in fact,
committed policy violations.
-Did you observe any
policy violations in this case?
-Um.
I may have, yes.
-And what policy violations
do you believe you may
have observed in this case?
-The duty to render, you know,
to render aid right away.
-Did you express concern
about that to anyone?
-Uh, no.
-How could he acknowledge that,
but still the officers
are not held accountable?
And you could tell he didn't
want to say the truth.
He hesitated,
'cause he knew what --
how big of a deal it was,
but he had a responsibility
to tell the truth,
just like his officers
had a responsibility
to serve
and protect my brother.
But they didn't do
what they were supposed to do.
-The interim city attorney
told The Post,
"The duty to render aid cannot
occur until it is safe to do so,
and it was not safe to roll him
over while they were recovering
because they had no energy left
to fight him."
The lawyers also questioned
Darcy Klund,
the homicide detective who led
questioning of both officers
on the scope
and rigor of the investigation.
-Did you ever ask Callahan
whether Smith offered
any continued resistance
after being placed
in the prone restraint?
-No.
-Was that important to you?
-To ask him that question?
-Yeah.
-No.
-Was it important to you
in your analysis of the case?
-No.
-How about, did you ask
Gorman that question?
-No.
-Was it important to you?
-No.
-Did you ask Callahan the length
of the prone-restraint position?
-No.
-Gorman?
-No.
-Was it important to you?
-No.
-Were you -- did you ask
any questions about the length
of the application of pressure
to Smith's back?
-No.
-Was that important to you?
-No.
-Did you ask any question
about the amount of pressure
applied to Smith's
back by Gorman?
-No.
-Either to Callahan or Gorman?
-No.
-Was that important to you?
-No.
-You didn't ask him
any questions
about the pen-camera video?
-Video usually speaks
for itself.
-I know, but it also provides
a vehicle
to ask questions about it,
doesn't it?
-It could, if you
had those questions.
-And you didn't.
-No.
-The city attorney agreed
with Klund's assessment,
telling the Post,
"Once detectives viewed
the pen-camera video,
it was obvious why the officers
knelt on Mr Smith,
so no follow-up questions
were necessary."
Nearly three years
after Smith's death,
Minneapolis reached
a $3 million settlement
with his family in 2013.
It was one of
the highest settlements
the city had ever awarded
at that time.
-Part of that settlement was
that they would provide training
on the risks
of positional asphyxia
to the Minneapolis
Police Department.
-We wanted justice.
We want somebody to pay
for this pain that we felt,
this grief
that we couldn't get past.
And so, you can't imagine
the pain it felt, I felt,
when I watched
the video of George Floyd.
-In both cases, police were
responding to minor concerns.
Both men resisted police
and died after being restrained.
Both deaths were ruled
a homicide.
But while Floyd's death caused
four officers to lose their jobs
and face criminal charges,
no such changes happened
after Smith died.
Callahan, who remains on
the Minneapolis police force
after nearly 27 years,
referred questions about the
Smith case to the department.
Gorman, who retired in 2016,
did not respond
to request for comment.
In June, the Minneapolis police
chief issued a statement,
saying that their officers
received the training
the Smith-family-lawsuit
settlement required,
but the Smith family's lawyers
have struggled
to get more detail on what
officers were actually taught.
-I would have expected that
after what happened
to David Smith
that I would have received some
evidence of a large presentation
that every officer received
that very specifically talked
about how David died
and how to avoid those types
of deaths in the future.
And from what I've observed,
you know,
I have not seen
any sort of training
that looks that significant.
-Storms is also on the team
of lawyers
representing Floyd's family
in a civil lawsuit
against the city,
which alleges that the city
didn't keep its promises
to the Smith family.
-We were told and believed
that we made a difference.
It's the same police department
using the same tactic,
killing another person.
I'm speaking up now because
before I trusted the system.
If we don't do something
about this,
it's gonna continue happening.
