Woman Dies After Police and Medics Restrain Her During Disturbance Call in May

A 47-year-old woman died in late May after she was handcuffed and restrained by Dallas police officers and Dallas Fire-Rescue officials in Far East Dallas, police announced Wednesday.

The footage released by police shows that officers and Dallas Fire-Rescue officials pinned down LaDamonyon Hall, handcuffed her and took her to the hospital with a spit hood over her head as she yelled and fought against them. She fell unresponsive just before arriving at the hospital.

Hall’s autopsy report was still pending Wednesday.

Asked why Dallas police waited 13 days to tell the public about her death, police spokeswoman Kristin Lowman said the “family needed an opportunity to review the video” and that relatives met with detectives late last week.

The department’s general order says that such a video must be released within 72 hours of the incident. Lowman said the policy is either within 72 hours or “at the discretion of the police chief and notification of the police oversight committee.”

Dallas police oversight monitor Tonya McClary could not immediately be reached for comment.

Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesman Jason Evans said his department was aware of the incident and was reviewing the matter internally.

In the introduction to a 38-minute video released Wednesday, Dallas police Deputy Chief Terrence Rhodes said an employee called 9-1-1 on May 26 about a disturbance at a business in the 12000 block of Garland Road and that Hall appeared to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Two officers—Jon Leach and Alan Hovis—arrived at 12:49 p.m., and two others—Benjamin Lambourne and Brandon Pryor—came later.

The body-camera footage starts with an officer approaching Hall and asking “What’s going on today?”

After a short back-and-forth where Hall said she feels OK, an officer asks if she needs an ambulance. She shakes her head but appears to say yes.

A short time later, an officer who has walked away returns to Hall, who is lying facedown on the ground as three Fire-Rescue officials stand next to her. One appears to say Hall got mad and pushed them.

Hall appears to be crying and says something about being killed. “No, we’re not going to let anyone kill you,” the Fire-Rescue official says. “We want to check you out. Can we take you to the hospital?”

Hall begins to wail and rolls over onto her back. She later yanks off her wig and an officer tells her to calm down.

Hall, visibly distressed, begins to speak unintelligibly. She then gets up and walks away while taking off her clothes. An officer grabs her arms as she’s pulling her skirt over her head, and she yells.

The officer pulls her arm to the ground and she screams. Another officer kneels on her back as she’s pinned to the ground.

“You hurt me [expletive],” she yells.

An officer tells others they were trying to take Hall under arrest and stop her from running off and “getting naked.” Hall can be heard screaming as officials lift her onto a stretcher and place a spit hood over her head, then place her in the ambulance.

“You got a few minutes, calm down before we get to the hospital so they don’t have to tie you back up like that,” an officer says.

“Try to breathe, OK?” he says a moment later, and Hall yells out more.

Hall falls silent about 30 minutes into the footage. About 40 seconds later, the officer says he’s not sure what’s going on and says “Can you talk to me?” multiple times.

“Want to get that off of her?” the officer says, referencing the spit hood. The paramedic begins to rub Hall’s chest as he and the officer ask if Hall can hear them.

The paramedic begins to pump Hall’s chest as the ambulance stops at Baylor University Medical Center near the end of the video. A paramedic asks the officer “to holler at the nurses,” and the officer runs inside.

Hall was pronounced dead at 2:05 p.m., Rhodes said.

Police are investigating the death.

Staff writer Maggie Prosser contributed to this report.

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