Body camera video released of father's death in Indiana

DEMOTTE, Ind. – The family of a man who died after a seizure led to a police incident is reacting to newly released body camera video of the young father's death in northern Indiana.

Rhyker Earl's family called 911 after he suffered his second seizure of the day on Sept. 8 in Jasper County. Rhyker stopped breathing while handcuffed and restrained by police. He died two days later.

“I just want justice for my brother,” said Rhyker’s sister, Tara. Rhyker calls out to her in the released bodycam video.

He leaves behind a 6-year-old son and a 2-year-old daughter.

During a press conference on September 30, a portion of the video was played showing Rhyker pleading with police for his release. 13News has reviewed all videos posted.

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The video shows several police officers restraining a handcuffed Rhyker, who repeatedly screams and begs officers to get off of him. Deputies, emergency workers and Rhyker's family are pleading with him to calm down.

“I'm going to die!” Rhyker screams at the first responders.

“You’re not going to die,” a deputy tells Rhyker. “We’re trying to help you.”

In a statement, the sheriff described Rhyker as exhibiting “significant physical resistance.” In the video, you can hear a deputy reprimanding Rhyker for allegedly hitting a paramedic. The officers then begin to restrain him.

In the bodycam video, officers wonder aloud whether Rhyker is on methamphetamine. They also point out his resistance to the sedatives administered by the doctors.

Rhyker was in what's known as a “postictal state,” an altered mental state triggered by seizures. In this state, a person is confused and easily agitated. They also react differently to medications.

His aunt, Miracle Glawinski, says Rhyker was given several shots of sedatives, including at least four shots of ketamine.

“I watched him have 50 seizures,” Tara said. “It takes up to 15 minutes for him to come to after a seizure. I had to remind him who I was.”

At some point, Rhyker starts banging his head on the ground. The officers placed a pillow under his head that his family had allegedly given them to soften the blow. For most of the video, Rhyker is captured on his side.

While conscious, Rhyker begs to be released and everyone else begs Rhyker to calm down.

NOTE: Body camera video can be found here, with a warning that it is graphic.

At about 2:20 a.m. on Sept. 9, body camera video shows Rhyker lying face down on the pillow and stopping breathing while at least one officer restrains him.

The deputy apparently doesn't notice that Rhyker has stopped breathing and says, “You're doing good, Rhyker.”

It wasn't until first responders prepared to take him to the hospital two minutes later that they realized what had happened.

“Hey, is he breathing?” an emergency responder asks.

After a moment he says, “He looks blue.”

“Does he have a pulse?” asks a family member.

“We’re working on it,” says a deputy.

A moment later, the emergency responder says, “No.”

All first responders take immediate action, including CPR, to revive Rhyker.

RELATED: Rhyker Earl died after seizure led to police incident in northern Indiana. He's not the only one.

Rhyker was taken to the hospital in critical condition. Rhyker's father, Travis Earl, said his son suffered significant brain damage at the time of his first MRI scan. His condition continued to deteriorate in the hours that followed.

The Lake County Illinois coroner is conducting Rhyker's autopsy and has not provided a cause of death.

In the caption accompanying the videos, the sheriff's office wrote: “By releasing this video, the Jasper County Sheriff's Office is not drawing any conclusions about the actions of anyone involved in this incident. The independent investigation will reach these conclusions.”

Indiana State Police are investigating Rhyker's death.

“We need to make sure law enforcement knows how to deal with people in a medical crisis,” said Ben Crump, a civil rights attorney hired by the family. “And not to escalate the situation of a person who is already in a confused state.”

“I just hope that some responsibility is taken for what happened,” Travis said.

The family believes there is additional body camera video that has not yet been shared. They are also calling for better training for police and first responders in dealing with people who have suffered a seizure.

“If you wanted to teach a lesson about what not to do,” Crump said, “it would be this video.”

The Epilepsy Foundation said the best way to help someone who is confused after a seizure is to let them self-soothe.

“In 99.99% of cases it recovers on its own,” said Dr. Jaqueline French, chief physician at the Epilepsy Foundation. “You know, someone's in their own home and they're unlikely to get hurt and there's not much reason to do anything except maybe lock the door so they can't get out. But otherwise, you just wait for it to recover on its own, which it will.

Crump said it was not clear whether Rhyker's death was caused by the way he was restrained by police, the drugs administered or a combination thereof. His cause of death was not revealed.

Crump said the legal team will pursue “all avenues” to seek justice in Rhyker's death.

Here is a video of the press conference from September 30th. WARNING: This includes graphic body camera videos that may be disturbing to view.