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American Morning
Homicide Ruling
Aired December 04, 2003 - 07:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: A coroner is ruling that the death of Nathaniel Jones was a homicide. The African-American man died Sunday while in the custody of Cincinnati police.
Brian Cabell has the details from Cincinnati.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN CABELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The death certificate for Nathaniel Jones will list cardiac dysrhythmia, another term for cardiac arrest, as the official cause of death. It was brought on, the coroner says, by the violent struggle Jones had with Cincinnati police early Sunday morning.
The manner of death, as determined by the coroner: homicide.
DR. CARL PARTOTT, HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO CORONER: This word should not be interpreted as implying inappropriate behavior or the use of excessive force by police. Whether or not that occurred is not within the scope of my training and experience, nor that of my staff.
CABELL: The coroner stresses several factors contributed to Jones' death: his obesity, a history of hypertension and the ingestion of drugs -- cocaine, PCP and methanol. Methanol is sometimes used to heighten the effects of other drugs.
The attorney for Jones' family says he doesn't trust the coroner's findings and will call for a second autopsy.
Jones' aunt says those who viewed the police tape don't understand what a good person her nephew was.
DIANE PAYTON, NATHANIEL JONES' AUNT: He's very much loved, and he will very much missed. He was a big guy, and I'm going to dearly, dearly miss those juicy hugs and that fat, fuzzy face. He was the sweetest man you've ever seen.
CABELL: A surveillance tape at the restaurant, where the deadly fight occurred, showed Jones in an apparently animated, but not belligerent, mood shortly before the encounter with police. Jones' family and supporters want to know why he changed and if he was provoked.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
So, Jones' death has been ruled a homicide, but the coroner cautioned us repeatedly that does not mean murder. It does not imply wrongdoing. What it simply means is that someone else was involved in that death.
The only other conceivable option open to the coroner would have been an accidental death, and the coroner said in his mind this did not meet the definition of an accident -- Anderson.
COOPER: All right, Brian Cabell, thanks very much this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired December 4, 2003 - 07:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: A coroner is ruling that the death of Nathaniel Jones was a homicide. The African-American man died Sunday while in the custody of Cincinnati police.
Brian Cabell has the details from Cincinnati.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN CABELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The death certificate for Nathaniel Jones will list cardiac dysrhythmia, another term for cardiac arrest, as the official cause of death. It was brought on, the coroner says, by the violent struggle Jones had with Cincinnati police early Sunday morning.
The manner of death, as determined by the coroner: homicide.
DR. CARL PARTOTT, HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO CORONER: This word should not be interpreted as implying inappropriate behavior or the use of excessive force by police. Whether or not that occurred is not within the scope of my training and experience, nor that of my staff.
CABELL: The coroner stresses several factors contributed to Jones' death: his obesity, a history of hypertension and the ingestion of drugs -- cocaine, PCP and methanol. Methanol is sometimes used to heighten the effects of other drugs.
The attorney for Jones' family says he doesn't trust the coroner's findings and will call for a second autopsy.
Jones' aunt says those who viewed the police tape don't understand what a good person her nephew was.
DIANE PAYTON, NATHANIEL JONES' AUNT: He's very much loved, and he will very much missed. He was a big guy, and I'm going to dearly, dearly miss those juicy hugs and that fat, fuzzy face. He was the sweetest man you've ever seen.
CABELL: A surveillance tape at the restaurant, where the deadly fight occurred, showed Jones in an apparently animated, but not belligerent, mood shortly before the encounter with police. Jones' family and supporters want to know why he changed and if he was provoked.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
So, Jones' death has been ruled a homicide, but the coroner cautioned us repeatedly that does not mean murder. It does not imply wrongdoing. What it simply means is that someone else was involved in that death.
The only other conceivable option open to the coroner would have been an accidental death, and the coroner said in his mind this did not meet the definition of an accident -- Anderson.
COOPER: All right, Brian Cabell, thanks very much this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
