DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A metro Atlanta family filed a complaint after a man with a mental illness allegedly died while in police custody when officers were called for help.
The complaint states that the family of 49-year-old Arben Pilici called police for help after he refused to go to his doctor’s appointment to renew his mental health prescriptions, but it turned deadly after an officer allegedly pinned Pilici down for eight minutes, cutting off his airway.
The family’s attorney said the complaint is shining a light on how officers continue to be accused of excessive force on people with mental illness and how asphyxiation by police continues to be a deadly occurrence. Lawyers called for better training for law enforcement officers to prevent these deaths from occurring…