Dad demands answers after man dies in alleged police beating

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44005599/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/#.TjnLGGNGZhk

8/3/2011

SANTA ANA, Calif. — Six police officers have been placed on leave after a surveillance video surfaced of witnesses expressing horror moments after seeing a homeless man beaten to death, allegedly by the officers.

Kelly Thomas, 37, died five days after an altercation with Fullerton, Calif., officers at the Fullerton Transportation Center.

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When speaking to the City Council, Thomas referred to audio of the alleged altercation that was posted online on You Tube, NBC Los Angeles said.

"Listen to my son beg those officers, 'Please, please, please God, I'm sorry, I'm sorry,'" said Thomas. "And, then, the last words of his life — 'Dad, dad.' I want you to hear that for the rest of your life like I will."

Thomas said his son had been a normal teen who aspired to be a wildland firefighter until he began to exhibit symptoms of schizophrenia in his early 20s.

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In the video taken aboard an Orange County Transportation Authority bus, passengers say officers pounded Kelly Thomas' face and hog-tied him as he cried out for his father.

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On the bus surveillance video, passengers boarding a bus that arrived minutes after the confrontation tell the driver what they saw.

A woman who appears upset tells the driver: "The cops are kicking this poor guy over there. ... He's almost halfway dead."

A male witness says the man, later identified as Thomas, was sitting on a bench when he was approached by two officers and ran from them. The man says police used a stun gun on Thomas six times.

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Thomas suffered severe head and neck injuries and was taken off life support on July 10. On Wednesday, a small group of protesters marched outside the police station with posters depicting Thomas' bloodied and swollen face after the altercation.

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