What we know about D’Vontaye Mitchell, a Black man who died after being pinned to the ground in Milwaukee

WTMJ, CNN

By Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN

(CNN) — D’Vontaye Mitchell was his mother’s “big teddy bear,” who enjoyed music, cooking and art, and was a beloved brother, uncle and father of two.

Mitchell, 43, died on June 30, after he was pinned down by hotel security guards outside a Hyatt Regency in Milwaukee in an incident partially captured on video. Hotel employees have been fired since the incident, and police have referred four charges of felony murder in Mitchell’s death, Milwaukee Police said in a statement to CNN Friday, while an ongoing homicide investigation is underway and the full results of the autopsy are pending.

The encounter comes as the use of force – particularly against people of color – by police and others in authority roles remains under scrutiny nearly four years after protests flared nationwide following the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer.

It’s unclear what led up to Mitchell’s encounter with the security guards, how long it took officers to arrive on the scene and what Mitchell was doing at the hotel.

Here’s what we know about Mitchell, the incident and what witness video shows:

What witness video shows (and doesn’t show)

Police allege Mitchell “caused a disturbance,” prompting security guards to escort him out of the hotel, according to a statement from civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents the Mitchell family.

Security guards and others then pinned Mitchell to the ground, part of a video posted on social media shows Mitchell grunting and pleading with the guards, repeatedly saying “please” and “I’m sorry.”

It’s unclear what part of the incident witness video captured, what led up to this moment and what happened in the moments after.

One guard, who appears to be White, can be heard saying, “Stay down,” and “Stop fighting,” as the others, who appear to be people of color, hold Mitchell down, the video shows. The same guard calls out to witnesses, “This is what happens when you go into the ladies room.”

Hotel operator fires ‘hotel associates’ involved

It’s unclear how many “hotel associates” were fired and if they include the security guards involved in the Mitchell incident. Those security guards initially were suspended as Aimbridge Hospitality, which operates the downtown hotel, completed its investigation, a Hyatt spokesperson told CNN on Monday.

“The conduct we saw from several associates on June 30 violated our policies and procedures, and does not reflect our values as an organization or the behaviors we expect from our associates,” Aimbridge Hospitality, said Thursday in a statement about the death of D’Vontaye Mitchell.

“Following review of their actions, their employment has been terminated,” the statement added. “We will continue our independent investigation and do everything we can to support law enforcement with their investigation into this tragic incident.”

A homicide investigation is underway

The local prosecutor is investigating Mitchell’s death as a homicide, he said Wednesday.

The district attorney’s office is awaiting the full results of Mitchell’s autopsy, which will help inform the police investigation into his death and allow the office to evaluate what happened before his death “from the perspective of potential criminal liability,” District Attorney John Chisholm said Wednesday in a statement.

CNN has reached out to the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s office.

Police have been in consultation with the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office since July 5 and have subsequently referred the charges to the DA, who is reviewing them, Milwaukee Police said in a Friday statement.

It’s unclear who those four felony charges are for and how they came to be.

Crump said the charges would be a “significant step toward justice” that “underscore the severity of the actions that led to D’Vontaye’s sudden and untimely death.”

“We must now press for these charges to be formally filed by the District Attorney’s Office in order for these officers to truly be held accountable,” he said in a Friday statement to CNN.

Crump had originally said Milwaukee Police were not considering the incident as a criminal investigation because there wasn’t any evidence of “blunt force.”

CNN has reached out to Crump’s team for more information.

Crump’s office obtained an affidavit from an unidentified hotel employee who claimed he reluctantly helped hold down Mitchell after being ordered to do so by a security guard, the attorney said. Crump said he would turn the document over to prosecutors but did not release it publicly.

How loved ones remember his big heart

Mitchell’s mother, Brenda Giles, said her eldest son was a jolly and outgoing brother, uncle and father who loved his family, she told WTMJ.

“Everybody that knows him, to know him is to love him, they know,” his sister, Nayisha Mitchell, told the station. “They knew he was a good person.”

Mitchell was known for his creativity in the kitchen, according to his obituary, which was read during Thursday’s funeral.

“The man could turn a can of ravioli into a gourmet meal,” the obituary said.

“He loved to dance, and he was harmless,” Giles told reporters Wednesday. “I always called him my big teddy bear.”

Mitchell enjoyed expressing himself through art and music. He had a love for drawing, singing, gospel music, dancing and writing original rap lyrics, his obituary read.

“He also had an insatiable love of knowledge, which he fed through his love of documentaries,” it continued. “D’Vontaye was an avid family man who filled his time visiting his kids and family and he lit up every face with joy when he entered the room.”

“He was known as the person to go to for help, because his big heart would seldom allow him to say no.”

When Mitchell’s father passed away in 2016, Mitchell fell into depression, his family told WTMJ. Giles believes her son was suffering from a mental health episode at the time of the incident, according to Crump.

“To see him go out this world the way he did, that was devastating. That would never leave my mind, that’s going to live with me for the rest of my life,” Giles, told reporters Wednesday.

CNN’s Rebekah Riess contributed to this report.

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