Two officers are charged with second-degree murder, while one is charged with manslaughter.
Ellis had been stopped by police for allegedly trying to break into a car. Officers at the scene restrained him while Ellis complained that he couldn’t breathe. A medical examiner ruled Ellis’ death a homicide, saying that he died of hypoxia.
A large part trial of the trial will focus on how Ellis died on that night in March 2020, just months before racial justice protests swept across the country. Prosecutors point out that Ellis, who was a Black man, was not armed when he was restrained, Tased, and beaten by officers. However, the defense argues the 33-year-old man’s death was not caused by the officers’ involvement. That’s based on an autopsy that found Ellis had meth in his system, as well as an enlarged heart.