Echoes of Tragedy: The Frank Tyson Case and the Continuing Battle Against Systemic Police Violence

Bobby DiCello is representing the family of Frank E. Tyson, a 53-year-old Black man who died in police custody after saying, “I can’t breathe.”

In a tragedy reminiscent of George Floyd’s death, Mr. Tyson was handcuffed and apparently suffocated by police officers in Canton, Ohio, on April 18, 2024. Police body-cam footage captured Mr. Tyson’s last words and shows him lying motionless on the floor of a social club. It took more than five minutes for officers to check him for a pulse.

“The death of George Floyd traumatized and galvanized the American people – it led to a decisive call for change and an end to systemic police violence against Black men. It’s an unimaginable tragedy that only four years later, history repeats itself. Why tackle him? Why kneel on him? How could you know he lost consciousness and then do nothing? These questions demand answers. And so, we will get those answers for Frank and the whole Tyson family in this time of pain, grief, and disbelief,” Bobby said.

Bobby is representing Mr. Tyson’s family alongside his colleagues at DiCello Levitt.