In Pontiac, Michigan, a witness testified during a trial that took place more than a decade after the incident that a man, McKenzie Cochran, repeatedly said, “I can’t breathe,” while being held on the ground by security guards at a Detroit-area shopping mall in 2014. The witness, Hoy Monk II, who worked at a Foot Locker store in Northland Center in Southfield, recounted how Cochran was crying out as guards struggled to handcuff him and instructed him to “stop resisting.”
During the trial, jurors not only heard Monk’s testimony but also watched a dark, grainy video of the confrontation along with recordings from onlookers. The altercation began when Cochran refused to leave the mall following a dispute with a jewelry store owner, which led to a guard pepper-spraying him and ultimately wrestling him to the ground.
According to Monk, the conflict involved five guards working to restrain Cochran despite his repeated pleas that he couldn’t breathe. Even after Cochran was handcuffed and stood upright, Monk observed that his eyes were closed, indicating distress. When questioned by Assistant Attorney General Robyn Liddell, Monk confirmed that the guards did not respond to Cochran’s pleas to release him.
Cochran, who had an enlarged heart, tragically passed away as a result of the incident. One of the guards involved pleaded guilty the previous week, while another guard, Gary Chaffin, who had pepper-sprayed Cochran, passed away in 2017. The former Northland Center where the incident took place was demolished in the same year as part of redevelopment plans. Defense attorneys in the trial urged jurors to consider each guard’s actions individually, describing Cochran as a potential threat.
In 2014, the Oakland County prosecutor opted not to press charges, citing that any errors made did not reach the threshold of a crime. However, in 2021, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel intervened and brought charges against the guards involved in the case. During cross-examination, Monk acknowledged the prevalence of fights, shoplifting, and drug activity at the mall at the time, suggesting such incidents were not uncommon in that setting.