From [HERE] A year and a half after Derek Williams' death in Milwaukee police custody, the justice system's involvement in the case is just beginning. An inquest jury's ruling Thursday that three police officers should be charged with misdemeanors in connection with Williams' death marks the first formal decision in what could be a very long process. The case could take many more months - or even years - to wind its way through the courts: state and federal, criminal and civil. It marked the first time an inquest jury in Milwaukee County has recommended charges against a police officer in at least 25 years.

Inquest verdicts are advisory. It will be up to special prosecutor John Franke, perhaps in cooperation with the state Department of Justice, to decide whether to issue the charges. Franke left court without comment after the verdict was announced.

Williams suffocated to death while handcuffed, naked from a strip search, in the back of a police car. He repeatedly told white police officers he couldn't breathe for at least 15 minutes between the time of his arrest and his death. They repeatedly ignore him as he suffocated to death. It is captured on graphic video which was released in September. (graphic video, no sound for first minute) [MORE]

Three of the officers involved in the arrest of Williams, who died after gasping for air in the back of a squad car, should be charged with failure to render aid by a law enforcement officer, a misdemeanor that carries a maximum penalty of nine months in jail, jurors concluded. (about 2 weeks in jail for every minute they ignored his pleas for help. -BW)