Daniel Prude and the Costs of Police Brutality--Ke'Shunta Drake

Ke'Shunta Drake is an Assistant Editor at Historianspeaks.org. She is a graduate student at Michigan State University where she is completing studies in English Literature.

The 911 call that Daniel Prude’s brother Joe Prude made on an early March morning was supposed to be a routine mental health call; Joe says: “I placed a phone call to get my brother help, not to have my brother lynched.” Joe later referred to the officers’ treatment of his brother as “cold-blooded murder.” Although the details are horrific, Daniel Prude’s case is no different than the police brutality cases we have witnessed this year. One of the best comparisons is the Breonna Taylor case. This case has received public attention for the past several months due to ongoing protests in Louisville, Kentucky. Both cases escaped public notice due to the pandemic. Prude and Taylor were also unarmed victims and officers at both scenes did not give prompt medical aid to the victims. Moreover, the police investigations in these cases included delays or coverups in the presentation of evidence These trends are not only disturbing but raise questions about how law enforcement interacts with citizens. Police reform calls for civilian review boards, increased use of de-escalation methods, the introduction of social workers and mental health professionals to emergency response teams and more transparency in police investigative techniques are needed now more than ever. The death of Daniel Prude heightens the need to address this issue.

Unknown to Daniel Prude or his brother Joe Prude a family visit would become a family tragedy. Daniel Prude arrived in Rochester, from Chicago to spend the weekend with his brother. After his arrival, Daniel began acting erratically. Daniel underwent a mental evaluation. Prude was released the same night; his erratic behavior continued.

Concerned about his brother’s health, Joe called 911 and informed the dispatcher that he thought his brother was having a “mental breakdown.” Officers arrived to find Daniel Prude naked and disoriented in the street. They ordered Prude to the ground and placed him in handcuffs. The officers claim Prude admitted to having coronavirus, so they put a spit bag, a mesh head covering used to have germs, over his head. The spit bag sent Prude into a panic. His actions alarmed officers, and they began to force his face and body into the ground to subdue him. Prude pleaded for his life: “They are trying to kill me,” these were his last words before becoming unresponsive. Mental health experts are critical of these tactics: “That (a spit bag) would scare anybody even someone in their right mind.” The police bodycam video shows officers mocking and laughing at Prude’s delirium. In the words of Joe Prude, they treated him like a “damn animal. “Even though the officers were aware the call was a mental health call, it did not factor into their decisions on the scene nor was a mental health professional utilized.

As if Prude’s death was not enough, the police investigation and suppression of evidence is even more concerning. Rochester police chief, La Ron Singletary was forced to resign following the investigation of Prude’s death. Singletary’s resignation came suddenly after New York attorney general, Letitia James, impaneled a grand jury related to the circumstances surrounding Prude’s death. Both Singletary and Rochester’s mayor, Lovely Warren, denied the Prude’s death was covered up. However, the details surrounding Daniel Prude’s case were not released until five months after his death. Prude died on March 30 in the hospital. The Rochester police department ruled his death as a PCP overdose. The coroner’s report concluded Prude’s cause of death as a homicide, resulting from asphyxiation.

Black people are six times more likely to die from police brutality than White people. This reality is compounded by other factors: mental illness and investigative coverups. Mental illness is an ever-present issue in the Black community. Adult Black Americans are 20% more likely to experience high levels of mental distress than White Americans. Police officers are often ill-equipped to deal with mental illness and substance abuse, so they resort to wanton force. Investigative coverups as we have seen in Prude’s case and other cases like Breonna Taylor’s deflate confidence in law enforcement and harms citizens. We must acknowledge how mental illness and investigative coverups have factored into some of the police brutality incidents we have seen this year. We must also weigh the costs of police brutality. Police brutality costs law enforcement goodwill and confidence among the public and erodes trust in investigations. An awareness of these costs will deepen our understanding of how to reimagine law enforcement practices and policies for the greater good.