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Video Shows Facility Staff Restraining Black Teen Who Died

(CBS DETROIT) - At least seven men are shown in surveillance footage holding down a Black teenager for about 8 minutes after being restrained for throwing a sandwich at Lakeside Academy in Kalamazoo.

16-year-old Cornelius Fredericks went into cardiac arrest on April 29 and died May 1.

In the footage, which was released to reporters Tuesday by Detroit-area attorney Geoffrey Fieger, 16-year-old Cornelius Fredericks was seen pushed to the floor in April before staff members at the youth facility begin to hold him down.

Lakeside - Camera Angle 2 by Michigan HHS on YouTube

The footage shows several of the men appearing to pull and hold Fredericks' arms and legs down. Others were seen sitting or laying on top of his chest and abdomen.

Toward the end of the footage, Fredericks appears limp. He falls back to the floor after staffers try to sit him up, others can be seen moving in to start CPR.

The lawsuit states Fredericks screams "I can't breathe" as they restrained him. The footage had no sound when shown to reporters.

His death was ruled a homicide and the doctor who performed the autopsy said Fredericks had been restrained on the ground, which resulted in asphyxia.

Two male staffers and a female nurse have been charged with involuntary manslaughter in Fredericks' death and have since been fired by the company.

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