CANTON, Ohio — The Celebration of Life service for Frank E. Tyson, the Canton man who died in police custody last month, was held Wednesday at Hear the Word Ministries Church.
American Civil Rights activist Rev. Al Sharpton gave the eulogy at the funeral. Attorney Ben Crump, who represented the families of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, is representing Tyson's family, was also among those who spoke.
During the eulogy, Sharpton called on the community to, "Stand up for Frank Tyson!"
"You can't give us Frank back, but you can give justice to this family," Sharpton said.
Sharpton described what happened to Tyson as an assault on the community, and "nobody qualifies to be a victim."
Community reaction
News 5 reporters spoke to members of the community about Tyson's death.
"I'm feeling bad; I'm going to miss him. I mean, it was wrong. I just want justice." Muriel Mitchell, Frank Tyson's cousin, said.
Barbara Card, who is a family friend, said, "It just broke my heart to see this happen to anybody, black or white."
Bishop G.L. Evans II from the Greater Bethel Apostolic Church and president of Stark County Black Caucus said, "The community comes together and embraces that, showing our love and showing our respect to that because of the Tyson family themselves, what they represent in the community—I think it's being felt across the whole community, the whole county."
What happened on April 18
According to Canton Police, officers responded to a one-vehicle crash in the 1700 block of Sherrick Road Southeast around 8:15 p.m. on April 18.
Officers found a power pole in the road and Tyson's vehicle empty. Police located Tyson a short distance away after witnesses pointed them towards the AMVETS lodge down the street.
Canton Police said that Tyson struggled with officers during his arrest and, after he was placed in handcuffs, became unresponsive. CPR and several doses of Narcan were administered before paramedics arrived.
Tyson was taken to Aultman Hospital, where police say he was pronounced dead at 9:18 p.m.
'I can't breathe'
Canton Police later released video footage of Tyson's arrest.
Two Canton police officers, identified by the department as Beau Schoenegge and Camden Burch, attempt to handcuff the 53-year-old Tyson at 8:27 p.m.
In the video, Tyson says: "They’re trying to kill me," and also says, "I can't breathe."
The struggle continues as officers get Tyson fully on the ground, one officer with his knee pressed on his back. Tyson was also handcuffed. Tyson continued to shout that he couldn’t breathe.
RELATED: Canton police body cam reveals 8-minute gap until CPR is given to suspect who died in police custody
An officer then takes his knee off Tyson’s back.
After Tyson is apprehended on the ground at 8:29 p.m., officers are seen looking through his wallet for an I.D. and talking to bystanders. Five minutes after Tyson said he couldn’t breathe for the final time, another officer came back in the frame at 8:34 p.m.
“Did he clam down?” asked the officer. “Is he breathing?”
The officer checked his pulse before walking out of the frame.
Minutes continue to pass.
“Does he have a pulse?” asked an officer at 8:37 p.m. “He’s unresponsive.”
According to the video, officers started CPR eight minutes after Tyson was last responsive on video. CPR continues for over 10 minutes as medics arrive on the scene until eventually stopping at 8:51 p.m. when Tyson is rolled out on a stretcher.
Tyson's family wants a thorough investigation
Tyson’s niece, Jasmine, said she watched the video with police when it was released.
“He said that he didn't want to die,” Jasmine said. “He was like, ‘call the sheriff,’ and then when they finally got him down, he said that he couldn’t breathe.”
Jasmine said her uncle was released just weeks ago from a 24-year prison sentence. They didn’t get a chance to visit.
“We just kept saying, 'We are going to see each other, we are going to see each other,'” she said.
“I just hope BCI takes their time watching this because every inch and every time of that video needs to be played at the bar; that’s what they need to see,” Jasmine said. "It’s crazy, it’s nonsense.”
Differing viewpoints
Use of force experts differ on what the body camera video reveals.
Former law enforcement officer and use of force expert Kalfani Ture watched the body camera video and is questioning the officers' training.
"Once a suspect tells you that they cant breathe, you are just as responsible for preserving life," Ture said. "What's striking here is, I think, an indifference to the individual's humanity."
Ture said the amount of time it took to start CPR is troublesome.
"It's quite a bit of time. I mean, he goes silent," Ture said. "To go from being loquacious to not saying anything at all should have indicated to these well-trained officers."
However, another law enforcement expert, Tim Dimoff, saw the video differently.
"Once these officers knew that he was unconscious, they immediately take the handcuffs off," Dimoff said.
Dimoff feels the officers seemed unaware that Tyson had stopped breathing.
"I think they did everything they could within the few minutes of response time they had once they understood that potentially he was not responding," Dimoff said.
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