“I can’t breathe,” were the last words from Manuel Ellis before his death.
And it’s part of the testimony going on Tuesday in the trial of three Tacoma police officers.
On Tuesday, a prosecution expert in forensic audio testified. The judge ruled earlier in the day the expert could introduce a transcript, featuring the last words from Ellis " I can’t breathe.”
Ellis died in a violent arrest, where officers were recorded on top of him and beating him.
Two officers face murder charges, and a third, manslaughter.
The defense points to the role drugs may have played but a pathologist said he stands by the official cause of death - oxygen deprivation caused by physical restraint.
We’ve had a camera in the courtroom each day of the trial. it’s three weeks old and counting.