The release of body-worn camera footage related to the December police-involved in-custody death of a 35-year-old Gaithersburg man has been delayed, the Maryland Office of the Attorney General said Friday in a news release.
An updated release date for the footage was not provided in the news release.
The delay is the result of the need for more time by the office’s Independent Investigations Division to make redactions to protect the privacy of uninvolved individuals and “to allow parties to view the video before it is released to the public,” the release said. The division is investigating the incident and the actions are required under its protocols.
Generally, the division will release the body-worn camera footage from the responding officers within 20 business days of the incident, according to the release. Delays in the release of the footage of more than 20 days may occur for a variety of reasons such as investigators needing more time to complete witness interviews, technical delays to shield the identity of witnesses and allowing family members to view the video prior to its public release.
The investigation stems from the death of Marvin Salamanca Garcia, who died in a local hospital on Dec. 26. Two days prior, Garcia had been restrained by Gaithersburg police officers after he was acting erratically outside an apartment building in Gaithersburg.
On Dec. 30, the division identified Garcia and the seven Gaithersburg police officers involved in the incident, all of whom are assigned to the department’s Operations Bureau.
The officers include Sgt. Evan Milano, an 11-year veteran, and Cpl. Doug Seek, a nine-year veteran. The other officers are William Diggons, a seven-year veteran; Kelvin Colon, a three-year veteran; Nick Ozkayan, a four-year veteran; and Anna Reckley and Jaime Flores-Rios, both with one year of service, according to the attorney general’s office.
In accordance with Maryland law, the division is charged with investigating “police-involved incidents that result in death of individuals or injuries likely to result in death,” according to the attorney general’s office. Investigations focus on the potential criminal culpability of the officers involved in the incident.
The incident
According to the attorney general’s office and Gaithersburg police, officers responded at about 10:15 p.m. Dec. 26 to the 300 block of N. Summit Avenue “for a man causing a disturbance.”
Responding officers found Garcia lying on the ground in front of an apartment building. According to police, the man was covered in blood and “acting erratically.”
Garcia then got up and walked away from the apartment building, according to a December statement from the attorney general’s office. Officers “grabbed the man, placed the man on the ground, and held him” while waiting for Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service (MCFRS) crews to arrive, the statement said.
“During this time, the man became unconscious and stopped breathing. Officers began to render emergency medical aid,” the release said. Upon arrival, MCFRS crews took over rendering medical aid and transported the man to an area hospital, where he died Dec. 26, according to the release.
Gaithersburg police said in a statement about the incident that “officers recognized the man required medical treatment” after he got up and walked away from the apartment building. The statement said the officers held the man while providing “life-saving measures,” including the use of an AED, an automated external defibrillator.
Gaithersburg police and the attorney general’s office have not provided details about the type of injuries the man may have suffered or the potential cause of death.