Louisiana State Trooper Dakota DeMoss has come under scrutiny for his role in the death of Ronald Greene. However, it does not appear that his role in Greene's death will cost him his job. Instead, it appears that he will lose his job for an unrelated incident in which he is accused of using excessive force.
In contrast to DeMoss, Louisiana State Trooper Kory York will be punished for his role in Greene's death. CNN has reported that York will be "disciplined" for his actions in May 2019. However, CNN did not go into detail as to how York would be disciplined.
Greene died following an encounter with police officers on May 10, 2019. Initial reports alleged that Louisiana State Troopers attempted to pull Greene over, but he ignored officers and ended up in a single-car crash. Greene was later cuffed and died in the back of an ambulance on his way to the hospital.
Months after Greene's death, pieces of the initial police report came into question. First, the Baton Rouge NAACP obtained photos of Greene's face after his encounter with police. Bruised and bloodied, pictures of Greene's face prompted members of his family to say that his injuries were inconsistent with that of a single-car crash. From there, the FBI opened an investigation and the Associated Press obtained audio in which a state trooper bragged about beating Greene. Most recently, the Associated Press obtained video footage of the encounter that took place in May 2019. Video shows officers tasing, dragging and kicking Greene as he bleeds.
The discovery of video footage is particularly damaging to the report initially presented by Louisiana State Troopers. Officers initially reported that there was no body camera footage, but analysis of the footage found that one officer “pointed out that Lt. [John] Clary’s body camera was recording, causing Lt. Clary to immediately turn it off.”
Thus far, LJohn Clary, Kory York, DaKota DeMoss and Chris Hollingsworth have been identified as the four officers involved in Greene's death. York has been disciplined and DeMoss has been fired for an unrelated incident. Hollingsworth was also set to be fired, but he died in a car accident in 2020. At this time, it is unclear if Clary will be fired or face any criminal charges.
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