Vigil for Marty Atencio (5 images)

Marty Atencio died in a Phoenix hospital on Dec 20, 2011. He was arrested by Phoenix police a few days earlier after he exhibited "bizarre" behavior on the street. He was booked into the Maricopa County Jail. During the booking process he was tackled by Maricopa County Detention Officers and repeatedly hit was a Taser stun gun and then locked in a special holding cell called a "safe call." He was later found unconscious in the cell and transferred to a hospital, where he...
more »

Marty Atencio died in a Phoenix hospital on Dec 20, 2011. He was arrested by Phoenix police a few days earlier after he exhibited "bizarre" behavior on the street. He was booked into the Maricopa County Jail. During the booking process he was tackled by Maricopa County Detention Officers and repeatedly hit was a Taser stun gun and then locked in a special holding cell called a "safe call." He was later found unconscious in the cell and transferred to a hospital, where he died four days later. An autopsy showed no signs of illegal drugs or intoxication and a video from the jail showed that Atencio was not violent in the jail. His family has hired a lawyer and may sue the Maricopa County Sheriff's Department, which administers the jail.

Thursday night a handful people gathered at the jail held a vigil and silently mourned Atencio's death.
« less