A Los Angeles resident and cousin of BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors died after being arrested by multiple police officers for allegedly causing a traffic accident, attempting to flee from police and resisting arrest.
The man, 31-year-old Keenan Darnell Anderson, displayed erratic behavior before he died on April 3.
After the incident, he was taken to a local hospital, where he experienced a medical emergency and died about four and a half hours later. A preliminary toxicology report found cocaine metabolites and cannabinoids in his system.
Anderson repeatedly refused to cooperate with police orders after causing a traffic accident in Los Angeles. The protracted confrontation eventually led to his tasing
The Los Angeles Police Department alleged that Anderson was responsible for a car accident in the Venice area and found himself “behaving erratically” in the middle of the street. Officers attempted to conduct an investigation into a drunk driver.
After his death, Cullors took to Instagram to mourn the death of her cousin and blame his murder on the LAPD.
Cullors said Anderson is an educator who “has worked with high school-age kids.”
“He was an English teacher,” she wrote. “The LAPD killed three people this year. One of them is my family member.”
“Keenan deserves to be alive now, his child deserves to be raised by his father. Kennan we will fight for you and for all of our loved ones affected by state violence,” she wrote.
A social media post by Anderson’s sister addressed her brother’s death and expressed a similar sense of injustice. “Keenan Anderson my brother was killed by the LAPD I really think so,” she wrote.
“I can’t wait to see these bodycam footage.”
The more than 19-minute video documenting the tasing incident, posted online by the Los Angeles Police Department, shows Anderson behaving erratically and walking barefoot on the street.
When first approached, he begins to cooperate with the officer and sits on the sidewalk, although his behavior is erratic and he repeats the phrase, “They’re trying to kill me.”
Minutes later, when the officer tells him to remain seated, he gets up and drives back in the middle of the street where cars are driving. The cop then gets on his motorbike to follow him and again calls for backup.
When he catches up with Anderson, the officer tells him to roll over on the ground, which Anderson refuses.
After his death, BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors took to Instagram to mourn the death of her cousin and blame his death on the LAPD
Anderson repeatedly said someone tried to kill him during the incident
Police officers who arrived at the scene repeatedly asked Anderson to calm down and listen to them. He ran away and disobeyed her orders, actions that led to his tasing
Eventually, other officers arrive and use force on Anderson on the ground as he yells, “They’re trying to calm me down. I know too much.«
He also yells “They think I killed C Lo” and “C Lo tried to kill me” multiple times.
During a moment of the fight, he yells, “You’re trying to meet me with George Floyd,” apparently referring to the 2020 death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers.
As Anderson continues to physically fight the multiple officers who repeatedly ask him to calm down, he is warned that he will soon be tased if he doesn’t stop.
He ends up being chased multiple times as he continues to struggle while yelling at officers. He continued to speak even after being tased when firefighters and paramedics arrived.
As he is lifted into a wheelchair for transport, officials tell Anderson he will be taken to a local hospital in Santa Monica, where he died hours later.
The video posted online by the LAPD shows perspectives from the body cameras of several different officers at the scene, as well as a bystander watching the traffic incident that led to the dramatic altercation.
Citizens behind the arrest recorded the incident and talked among themselves about the traffic accident that happened earlier. A man said Anderson tried to steal his car before police arrived
Officers repeatedly gave Anderson instructions he refused to follow. He was warned that if he did not physically comply with their surrender instructions, he would be tased
In the background of the citizen’s video, a driver can be heard saying Anderson tried to steal his vehicle before police arrived.
An LAPD communications officer said that the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office will prepare its own independent toxicology report following Anderson’s death.
The LAPD has classified Anderson’s death as “on remand” and announced that its Force Investigation Division will conduct an investigation.
The police department appears to have released footage of the incident early, as “body-worn videos” are generally released “45 days after a critical incident,” police said.
On the same day, LAPD in south LA fatally shot a man armed with a sharp object and the day before another man was shot with a large knife.
Following the incident, BLM Los Angeles wrote in a statement, “A minor traffic accident should not result in death.”
Keenan Anderson with his child who is now 6 years old. He was reportedly an English teacher who worked with high school-age children
Patrisse Cullors — one of BLM’s co-founders — came under some scrutiny for spending donor money on lavish Los Angeles real estate that she lied about for years
The Black Lives Matter Network was founded in 2013 by three women: Cullors, Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi.
As the movement grew, it focused on advocating for the defunding of various police forces and law enforcement agencies.
It was announced last May that Black Lives Matter donated $200,000 in fiscal year 2021 to a Chicago group led by famed police activist Richard Wallace.
In 2020, Cullors told WBUR, “The demand for funding for law enforcement is becoming a central demand for how we actually get to real accountability and justice.”
“That means we’re limiting law enforcement’s ability to have resources that harm our communities,” she added.
Cullors has also become the target of ongoing criticism for amassing a real estate portfolio that seems at odds with her role as a self-proclaimed “trained Marxist.” Though many facets of the mainstream media have shied away from reporting on her multi-million dollar California properties, which were purchased with funds raised from her work as an activist.
In an interview with the Associated Press last year, Cullors denied allegations that she personally benefited from it during the six years she ran the BLM Foundation, but admitted to lying about the use of some of those properties.
Specifically, she admitted to using a $6 million LA home bought with BLM funds for personal off-BLM deals, after previously denying it.