Five police officers fired after man in custody kills himself

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Photo: WTOC/Daily Mail/ABC News

Five Georgia officers have been fired after a 60-year-old man died by suicide while alone in a police interview room, the department said.

William Harvey had been taken to Savannah police headquarters on April 3 for questioning in an aggravated assault investigation, the Savannah Police Department said.

There was no video footage while Harvey was alone in the room, according to the report.

The police officers – Leuschner, Kerr and White – allegedly left the room at one point during the interrogation, and returned to find Harvey unconscious.

They attempted to save Harvey, WJCL reports, but he died of his injuries

The Savannah Police Department confirmed the terminations on Monday.

“On April 3 SPD requested the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to investigate the death of William Harvey, 60, who had been transported to police headquarters for questioning in an aggravated assault investigation”, the Department said in a statement posted on Facebook.

“Harvey died while alone in an interview room. Upon discovery of Harvey, officers attempted life-saving measures; however, officers were unable to revive him. All officers connected to the incident were placed on administrative leave. The GBI later ruled the death a suicide.”

Savannah Mayor Van Johnson said in a statement to ABC News on Tuesday, “I am devastated that Mr. William Harvey died while under the care, custody and control of the Savannah Police Department.”

“While we cannot provide justice for the Harvey family, we can ensure accountability for the policies we did not follow and the actions we did not take,” Johnson said. “I do not believe that there was malicious intent on the part of the officers involved, but the result was deadly. And for that, I believe the decision to terminate was appropriate.”

Johnson and Savannah Police Chief Roy Minter said they have met twice with Harvey’s family.

“I hope and pray that they [the family] find some type of comfort knowing the Savannah Police Department did what we had to do to hold members of our organization accountable,” Minter told reporters Tuesday. “I don’t think any of these officers had any malicious intent in what they did, but they made some poor decisions and didn’t follow department policy and procedure.”

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