DINWIDDIE COUNTY, Va. -- Day two of the trial of Wavie Jones, who is charged in connection with the 2023 death of Irvo Otieno, began with defense attorneys attempting to have Irvo Otieno’s mother, Caroline Ouko, removed from the courtroom.
Attorneys argued that Ouko's crying in the courtroom was disruptive and that she spoke to the media on Monday.
The judge disagreed, and prosecutors continued to put on their evidence.
Otieno died on March 6, 2023 at a public psychiatric facility, Central State Hospital, while surrounded by Henrico County sheriff's deputies and hospital staff. Otieno had been transported to the hospital by deputies while suffering a mental health crisis.
Initially, seven Henrico County deputies and three hospital workers faced second-degree murder charges, but the new Dinwiddie Commonwealth’s Attorney has since withdrawn the cases against all but three defendants and reduced the charges to manslaughter.
Jones, who was a security employee at Central State Hospital, is the first of the defendants to stand trial. Jones is being represented by attorneys Doug Ramseur and Emilee Hasbrouck.
Perhaps the most compelling witness for the Commonwealth on Tuesday was Dr. Jennifer Bowers, a state medical examiner who performed Otieno’s autopsy.
Bowers explained how she reviewed video, medical records, and a police report to determine Otieno died of “positional and mechanical asphyxia by restraint.”
In simpler terms, she said Otieno was put into a face-down position on the floor, with added pressure from hospital staff and Henrico deputies, that hindered his ability to breathe.
Bowers testified that every single person, including Jones, who put their hands on Otieno during a 12-minute struggle at the hospital contributed to his death.
But the defense intensely questioned Bowers for nearly two hours — attempting to discredit her findings.
They argued she couldn’t have determined Otieno was face-down because the angle of the surveillance video capturring the moments he died limits the view of his body.
They also pointed out that she couldn’t tell exactly how much weight Jones and others put on Otieno, and they presented studies and an academic text that they believe contradict her findings.
However, Bowers did not budge in her opinion and dismissed the studies presented by the defense as irrelevant to the circumstances of Otieno's death.
On Monday, the family and their civil attorney told reporters after court proceedings concluded for the day that the video is one of the strongest pieces of evidence in the case.
“We believe that when you look at the video, the video clearly shows all the weight is going down, it’s being pushed down for an extended period of time, and that’s what caused his death,” said Mark Krudys, the attorney for the Otieno family.
Defense attorneys are now putting on their witnesses, first calling on Henrico police officers who responded to Otieno’s home on March 3, 2023, three days before Otieno was taken to Central State Hospital.
The police response on March 3 is what triggered the chain of events that ultimately ended in Otieno's death.
On the stand, the officers acknowledged that Otieno was suffering a mental health crisis at the time, but at least one officer described him as aggressive and threatening and that his behavior made her feel unsafe.
Otieno was heard on video telling police, “I will kill you.”
Prosecutors noted that during his interactions with police at his home, Otieno did not physically strike any of the officers.
The defense is also expected to argue that Otieno died of a heart-related issue and plan to call medical experts to the stand to support that claim.
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