Did Tampa-area police tie down, pepper-spray, and eventually kill a disturbed man who was arrested for public intoxication?
That’s the account and accusation relayed by Reason.com. Over two years ago, 62-year-old Ohioan Nick Christie was detained for public intoxication while on a trip in the Tampa, Florida area.
The man’s wife asked that he be taken to the hospital, but Lee County cops allegedly decided instead to “strip Christie naked, tie him to a chair, cover his face, and then pepper spray him repeatedly, until he died.”
His death was ruled a homicide because he was restrained and repeatedly pepper-sprayed by law enforcement officers. But to this day, no one has been charged with a crime, and the state attorney cleared the sheriff’s office of criminal fault in the case.
