Adam Ahmad said he didn’t believe it was safe to turn Herman Whitfield III onto his side, even after the man was placed on his stomach and handcuffed.
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer took the witness stand Dec. 5 on the fourth day of the criminal trial against Ahmad and fellow officer Steven Sanchez. They are charged with involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide and battery in the death of Whitfield, a 39-year-old man from Indianapolis who died in their custody.
The case centers around whether the officers’ actions led to Whitfield’s death.
Marion County prosecutors contend that officers kept Whitfield on his stomach longer than necessary, contributing to his death.
The defense argues that the officers’ actions were “objectively reasonable” given the circumstances. They also presented a medical expert who testified that the prone position did not contribute to Whitfield’s death — in stark contrast with the pathologist who performed Whitfield’s autopsy for the Marion County Coroner’s Office.
Whitfield’s cause of death was heart failure while under police restraint, the autopsy found. The manner of death was listed as homicide.
The defense’s medical expert also testified that THC — of which there were high levels present in Whitfield’s blood at the time of his death — contributed to Whitfield’s heart failing. That’s also in contrast to the findings of the pathologist who investigated Whitfield’s death. He said THC was not a factor.
Sanchez, who used a Taser on Whitfield, testified Dec. 4 — saying he believed Whitfield was still a threat after he was handcuffed.
Ahmad differed somewhat on that point, saying that while Whitfield was not an “active threat” at that point and time, he was a “potential threat” given his behavior minutes earlier.
Ahmad testified that Whitfield’s unpredictable and erratic actions in the moments leading up to the use of the Taser made him a threat to himself and those around him.
After Whitfield was handcuffed, fellow IMPD officer Nicolas Mathew asked if Whitfield should be placed on his side. Ahmad said it was not safe to do so.
“When I tell (Mathew), ‘I don’t want him to get up again,’ I don’t want us to have to fight him again, regardless of whether he’s handcuffed or not,” Ahmad said.
Describing his state of mind at the time, Ahmad said he was concerned that Whitfield could become combative with officers.
“I absolutely do not want him to go back into that state with us not being in a position to appropriately respond,” Ahmad said.
Ahmad appeared frustrated at times on the witness stand during cross-examination, especially when Marion County deputy prosecutor Janna Skelton asked him to repeat his answers when she didn’t feel he answered her questions directly.
The scene through Ahmad’s eyes
Ahmad was one of the first officers to arrive at the Whitfield home in the early morning hours of April 25, 2022, after Whitfield’s mother called 911 as her son was experiencing a mental health crisis.
Ahmad and Dominique Clark, one of the other responding officers, began talking with a distressed Whitfield, a tactic known as “de-escalation” in police jargon.
Whitfield, standing over 6 feet tall and weighing about 400 pounds, was nude, sweating profusely and not responding to officers’ questions.
At that point, Ahmad said he believed Whitfield would require “immediate detention,” which involves placing a person in handcuffs and getting them into an ambulance.
Ahmad described how Whitfield went from pacing throughout the home, to sitting in a catatonic-like state for several minutes, to suddenly getting up and running through the kitchen.
When Whitfield exited the kitchen and ran into the living room, he was encountered by Sanchez, who deployed his Taser twice. Whitfield fell to the ground, and a struggle ensued as multiple officers worked to control Whitfield by placing him on his stomach and putting him in handcuffs.
After the handcuffs were secured, an officer radioed for the medics to come inside.
About 90 seconds passed before the medics came inside. During that time, Ahmad and the other officers kept Whitfield, who by that point was unresponsive, in the prone position.
“I absolutely did not want that change of state to happen again, and us not be ready to respond,” Ahmad said.
The jury is expected to begin deliberations Dec. 6.
Peter Blanchard covers local government. Reach him at 317-605-4836 or peter.blanchard@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @peterlblanchard.
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