Three years ago Adama Traoré, a 23-year old Black man, was found dead in a police cell, after having been restrained by the police, face down on the floor, following an ID check gone wrong.
Despite noticing his "abnormal body reactions" and Adama telling the police he had "difficulties to breathe", the police did nothing. When the emergency services were called in, Adama was still handcuffed, head on the ground. They were the ones who took his handcuffs off and settled him in recovery position, but he was already agonizing. He was pronounced dead a few moments after.
The prosecutor said in court that he had a severe infection, an asphyxia as well as heart issues and sickle-cell anaemia. His family always denied that he had such problems, mentioning how healthy and athletic he was. They were proven right by several forensic autopsies completed by various independent experts.
The Adama Committee is a collective created by his family in order to avoid the dismissal of his legal case, and, more generally, to maintain a spotlight on the police's grave misconduct and the justice system’s dysfunction that led to Adama’s death. To this day, none of the policemen have been investigated. They were not even questioned. On the other hand, several relatives of Adama are now in jail.
Today, the same policemen are pressing charges against Assa Traoré, Adama’s sister, who became a symbol of the fight against police violence in France. She is facing a 45000€ fine and a suspended jail sentence for publicly giving the names of the policemen responsible for her brother’s death.
Despite noticing his "abnormal body reactions" and Adama telling the police he had "difficulties to breathe", the police did nothing. When the emergency services were called in, Adama was still handcuffed, head on the ground. They were the ones who took his handcuffs off and settled him in recovery position, but he was already agonizing. He was pronounced dead a few moments after.
The prosecutor said in court that he had a severe infection, an asphyxia as well as heart issues and sickle-cell anaemia. His family always denied that he had such problems, mentioning how healthy and athletic he was. They were proven right by several forensic autopsies completed by various independent experts.
The Adama Committee is a collective created by his family in order to avoid the dismissal of his legal case, and, more generally, to maintain a spotlight on the police's grave misconduct and the justice system’s dysfunction that led to Adama’s death. To this day, none of the policemen have been investigated. They were not even questioned. On the other hand, several relatives of Adama are now in jail.
Today, the same policemen are pressing charges against Assa Traoré, Adama’s sister, who became a symbol of the fight against police violence in France. She is facing a 45000€ fine and a suspended jail sentence for publicly giving the names of the policemen responsible for her brother’s death.
We oppose this parody of justice and demand that retaliation against Adama’s family immediately cease this instant. We also hope that the truth about what happened on this fateful night will come to light and true justice be served.
Signed,