Nathan Woodyard is the last of three officers to stand trial in Elijah McClain’s death.
Elijah McClain died after police placed him in a chokehold during an arrest and medics injected him with a sedative.
Earlier this month, a jury rendered a split verdict for the two other officers charged in the case, finding officer Randy Roedema guilty of criminally negligent homicide and third-degree assault, and officer Jason Rosenblatt not guilty on any charges. Two paramedics face separate trials this month for their role in giving McClain ketamine, a powerful sedative at times used on highly agitated patients.
“Today’s verdict is not the one we hoped for, but we respect the jury system and accept this outcome,” Attorney-General Phil Weiser said in a written statement. It was not clear if Woodyard would be back on the force in Aurora. A spokesperson for the city government said it would “take a few days to sort through” the possible next steps on Woodyard’s employment. He said officials would be guided by the city charter, which states that any officer charged with a felony be immediately suspended, but that “such suspension shall be terminated by restoration to the service or by discharge as soon as the decision of the court becomes final.
“At every single turn, he chose to escalate,” Slothouber said of Woodyard’s use of force. “There was never an explanation to Mr. McClain of why this was happening to him.”