U.S.

Department of Justice
Channing D. Phillips
United States Attorney for the
District of Columbia
Judiciary Center
555 Fourth St. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20530

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, October 13, 2016

For Information Contact:

Public Affairs
(202) 252-6933
http://www.justice.gov/usao/dc/index.html

U.S. Attorneys Office Concludes Investigation Into Death

Of Alonzo Smith at Southeast Washington Apartment Building
No Charges to Be Filed Against Special Police Officers
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia announced
today that there is insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights or local charges
against two Special Police Officers involved in a confrontation at an apartment building in
Southeast Washington that ended with the death of 27-year-old Alonzo Smith.
The U.S. Attorneys Office and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) conducted a
comprehensive review of the November 1, 2015, incident, which included interviews of more
than two dozen civilian and law enforcement witnesses, and consultations with the Chief
Medical Examiner, Deputy Medical Examiner, and Chief Toxicologist at the Office of the Chief
Medical Examiner for the District of Columbia. The investigation also included the review of
autopsy and toxicology reports; body-worn camera footage which depicts part of the incident;
911 calls and radio transmissions; Mobile Crime reports and photographs; physical evidence
recovered on the scene, at the hospital, and from Mr. Smiths vehicle; DNA, fingerprint and drug
evidence recovered on the scene and from Mr. Smiths vehicle; and cellphone and cell site data.
After this review, the U.S. Attorneys Office concluded that the evidence is insufficient to
prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the Special Police Officers violated Mr. Smiths civil
rights by using excessive force or that they possessed the requisite criminal intent at the time of
the events. Rather, the evidence shows that Mr. Smith suffered a sudden cardiac incident that
resulted in death. At the time, Mr. Smith was under the influence of a significant amount of
cocaine and was being restrained by the Special Police Officers, both of which may have
contributed to the cardiac incident. While the Medical Examiner listed the manner of death
forensically as homicide, reflecting that the conduct of another person may have contributed to
Mr. Smiths death, a manner of death determination is insufficient, in and of itself, to establish
that another person is criminally responsible for an individuals death.

According to the evidence, on November 1, 2015, at approximately 2:25 a.m., Mr. Smith
arrived at the Marbury Plaza apartment complex, in the 2300 block of Good Hope Road SE, to
visit a friend in a high-rise building that is part of the complex. After parking his vehicle in the
2300 block of Good Hope Road, Mr. Smith went to the friends apartment. Between 3:10 and
3:30 a.m., Mr. Smith abruptly left the building, apparently returning to his car. At approximately
3:30 a.m., one of the Special Police Officers saw Mr. Smith run out from the building entrance
towards the grassy area in front of the high-rise. Mr. Smith, who was wearing pants but no shoes
or shirt, hid in the bushes; got up and hid behind the Marbury Plaza sign; lay down on the
ground; and ran back towards the front of the building. There was nobody near Mr. Smith. The
Special Police Officer radioed a second Special Police officer for assistance.
Mr. Smith then ran towards the rear parking lot of the nearby three-story garden
apartments, and the Special Police Officers followed, walking approximately 50 feet behind Mr.
Smith, who was yelling help, help. Mr. Smith continued to run through the rear parking lot to
the walkway next to the garden apartment building at 2312 Good Hope Road, and then to the
front parking lot while continuing to yell help. Between 3:30 a.m. and 4:00 a.m., multiple
civilian witnesses from inside 2312 Good Hope Road and from the high-rise apartment building
across the street saw Mr. Smith running around outside, shirtless and shoeless, and heard him
yelling for help. Some witnesses reported hearing Mr. Smith yelling theyre trying to kill me,
while another witness reported hearing Mr. Smith yelling shes trying to kill me. None of the
witnesses, however, reported that anyone was chasing or assaulting Mr. Smith or that the Special
Police Officers were doing anything other than walking, at a distance, behind him. There is also
no evidence that the Special Police Officers ever caught up to, or assaulted, Mr. Smith while he
was on the grounds of the Marbury Plaza apartment complex outside of 2312 Good Hope Road.
At 4:02 a.m., a resident of the high-rise building reported seeing Mr. Smith running
around outside, and then running into 2312 Good Hope Road, with nobody behind him.
According to multiple residents of 2312 Good Hope Road, once inside, Mr. Smith started
banging on their doors and yelling help. Because the residents believed Mr. Smith was on
drugs, none of the residents opened their doors. One resident saw Mr. Smith trying to climb the
interior fire escape ladder that leads to the roof.
At approximately 4:03 a.m., one of the Special Police Officers entered 2312 Good Hope
Road and saw Mr. Smith on the top floor of the building. Two residents reported hearing a voice
calmly telling Mr. Smith to come down from the ladder and to calm down. Mr. Smith then
tried to jump past the Special Police Officer and/or over the railing. The Special Police Officer
grabbed Mr. Smith in a bear hug-type move, pivoted, and put Mr. Smith onto the floor on the
staircase landing that is one flight up from the ground level. The other Special Police Officer
arrived after Mr. Smith was on the landing. While Mr. Smith remained on his stomach, the
Special Police Officers attempted to handcuff Mr. Smith, who was using his left hand to grip the
staircase and pull himself forward. The Special Police Officers ultimately utilized two sets of
handcuffs to secure Mr. Smith. There is no evidence that during this interaction with Mr. Smith,
either Special Police Officer punched, kicked, or otherwise struck Mr. Smith, and no resident
reported hearing any sounds of a struggle in the hallway.

At 4:05 a.m., two MPD officers arrived and ran into the building. Both MPD officers
were equipped with body worn cameras, which were activated. Mr. Smith was lying on his
stomach on the staircase landing one flight up, handcuffed behind his back. One of the Special
Police Officers was kneeling by, and occasionally on, Mr. Smiths lower back, while the other
Special Police Office was holding Mr. Smiths head down. As reported to the MPD dispatcher,
Mr. Smith was conscious and breathing at that time. The Special Police Officers informed the
MPD officers that they believed that Mr. Smith was under the influence of PCP. Upon being told
that Mr. Smith was under the influence of PCP, one of the MPD officers ran back outside to the
cruiser to get shackles for Mr. Smiths legs to further secure Mr. Smith in case of a drug-induced
violent outburst. The other MPD officer remained with Mr. Smith and the two Special Police
Officers. After the shackles were placed on Mr. Smiths ankles, and approximately one minute
after the MPD officers arrival, the officers realized that Mr. Smith had stopped moving and
making sounds, although he still had a pulse. As one MPD officer again updated the dispatcher,
the other MPD officer began administering CPR, which continued until the 4:11 a.m. arrival of
the first personnel from the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services
Department. After several minutes of rendering medical attention to Mr. Smith and finding no
vital signs, EMS personnel transported Mr. Smith to United Medical Center where, at 5:08 a.m.,
Mr. Smith was pronounced dead.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner performed the autopsy and concluded that the
cause of Mr. Smiths death was sudden cardiac death complicating acute cocaine toxicity while
restrained with a contributing factor of compression of torso, and that the manner of death
was homicide. There were no injuries to any of Mr. Smiths vital organs, to include his heart; no
signs of trauma to Mr. Smiths spine, neck, or brain; no broken bones; and no injuries to Mr.
Smiths face, teeth, oral cavity, chest, or genitalia. The autopsy report further revealed that Mr.
Smith had blunt force injuries that were described as abrasions, contusions and subcutaneous
hemorrhages on his head (a 3/16th superficial abrasion), neck (a hemorrhage caused by medical
intervention); torso (minor contusions and abrasions, and a deep muscular hemorrhage on his
back); and extremities (minor abrasions or hemorrhages on his shoulders, elbows, forearm,
wrists, and feet). Finally, a comprehensive toxicology screening revealed that Mr. Smith had
THC, which is the active ingredient in marijuana, and an exceedingly high amount of cocaine in
his blood. Cocaine intoxication can produce reactions similar to that normally associated with
PCP, to include hallucinations, an increase in body temperature, and erratic behavior.
Use-of-force investigations generally
The U.S. Attorneys Office reviews all police-involved fatalities to determine whether
sufficient evidence exists to conclude that any officers violated either federal criminal civil rights
laws or District of Columbia law. To prove such violations, prosecutors must typically be able to
prove that the involved officers willfully used more force than was reasonably necessary.
Proving willfulness is a heavy burden. Prosecutors must not only prove that the force used
was excessive, but must also prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the officer acted with the
deliberate and specific intent to do something the law forbids. A conclusion that there is
insufficient evidence is not meant to suggest anything further about what evidence, if any,
exists.

The U.S. Attorneys Office remains committed to investigating allegations of excessive

force by law enforcement officers and will continue to devote the resources necessary to ensure
that all allegations of serious civil rights violations are fully and completely investigated. The
Metropolitan Police Departments Internal Affairs Division investigates all police-involved
fatalities in the District of Columbia.
16-197

##