4 hotel workers charged with accessory to murder in connection with death of black man

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Prosecutors on Tuesday charged 4 Milwaukee hotel employees with accessory after the very fact to murder in connection with the death of D’Vontaye Mitchell.

Mitchell was black. The incident has drawn comparisons to the 2020 murder of George Floyd, a black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into his neck for about nine minutes. Floyd’s death sparked a nationwide depending on race that has been marked by protests across the country.

Charged are hotel security guard Todd Erickson, front desk clerk Devin Johnson-Carson, baggage handler Herbert Williamson and security guard Brandon Turner. Each faces up to 15 years and nine months in prison if convicted.

Erickson was reached by phone Tuesday evening. Erickson referred a request for comment to his attorney, Michael Steinle, who didn’t respond to voicemails or emails.

It was unclear whether any of the opposite three employees had lawyers. Online court records didn’t list any of them Tuesday evening. Williamson’s phone records have been disconnected, and The Associated Press couldn’t immediately locate phone numbers or other contact information for Johnson-Carson or Turner.

The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release that arrest warrants had been issued for all 4 employees. The office and the Milwaukee Police Department didn’t immediately respond to emails asking if the workers had been arrested or had attorneys.

According to a criminal grievance, 4 employees dragged Mitchell from the Hyatt on June 30 after Mitchell went into the ladies’s bathroom and held him on his stomach for eight or nine minutes. One worker told investigators that Mitchell was having trouble respiratory and was repeatedly asking for help, according to the grievance.

An autopsy showed Mitchell was morbidly obese and had used cocaine and methamphetamine, the grievance said.

Hyatt surveillance footage shows Mitchell frantically running into the hotel lobby after which into the gift shop before entering the ladies’s restroom, the grievance says. Just a few seconds later, a lady comes out and Turner, who was off-duty but visiting with staff, drags Mitchell out of the lavatory and into the lobby by his shirt.

The two begin to struggle, and Turner punches Mitchell, knocking him to the ground. He then punches Mitchell six times and drags him out of the hotel with the assistance of a bystander. Mitchell gets up and tries to get back inside.

Williamson, Johnson-Carson and Erickson, who was acting as a security guard, join the fight. He and Turner hold Mitchell in a prone position for eight to nine minutes before police and paramedics arrive. During that point, Mitchell is seen on video trying to break free several times, and Erickson hits him with a baton before he eventually stops moving, according to the grievance.

A video recording taken by a witness shows Mitchell groaning and saying he was sorry. An autopsy showed Mitchell was morbidly obese and had cocaine and methamphetamine in his system.

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The health worker ultimately determined that Mitchell died of “asphyxia due to restraint.” He might need survived if workers had allowed him to turn onto his side, the health worker said, according to the grievance.

Erickson told investigators that Mitchell was very strong and resisted them and tried to bite him. But the guard said he never did anything to intentionally hurt or harm Mitchell.

Turner told the detective he heard women screaming in the lavatory after Mitchell entered and thought Mitchell was high. At one point, while the group was holding Mitchell down, he pulled Mitchell’s clothes away from his face, he said, according to the grievance.

Johnson-Carson told investigators that Mitchell was “not in a mentally stable state” and was speaking “in gibberish,” the grievance says.

He said he remembers Mitchell saying “stop” and “why” and something about respiratory while he was being held down. He told Williamson to stop pushing, which he did. Johnson-Carson said Mitchell showed “obvious signs of extreme distress, including choking, difficulty breathing and repeated requests for help,” according to the grievance.

The grievance says the workers should have known Mitchell was in danger. “All of these factors, DM’s panting, his actions and words, the distress he was in, show that all four defendants knew that holding DM face down was ‘virtually certain’ to worsen his physical condition,” the grievance says.

Mitchell’s relatives and their attorneys had previously reviewed hotel surveillance footage provided by the district attorney’s office. They described seeing Mitchell being chased into the hotel by security guards after which dragged outside, where he was beaten.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is a component of the legal team representing Mitchell’s family, said video footage recorded by a bystander and circulating on social media shows security guards kneeling on Mitchell’s back and neck.

On Tuesday evening, Crump posted a press release on X calling the fees (*4*)

DeAsia Harmon, Mitchell’s widow, said Tuesday the choice was a relief. But she wondered why it took weeks.

“These people are on camera taking my husband’s life,” she said. “They should have been charged the moment they did it.”

Aimbridge Hospitality, the corporate that manages the hotel, previously said several employees involved in Mitchell’s death had been fired.

The company released a press release Tuesday evening saying it had fully cooperated with law enforcement and would proceed to cooperate with prosecutors. “Our hearts are with Mr. Mitchell’s family and loved ones as this matter moves forward,” the statement said.