Police Release Dash Cam Footage Of Arrest Of Suspect Who Died In Custody Following High-Speed Chase

Harris County, GA - Eighteen-year-old Nicholas Dyksma led authorities on a high speed chase in August 2015 before he was stopped in Harris County. Sheriff’s deputies tased Dyksma and pulled him from the vehicle. When they realized his breathing was shallow, they called 911, the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer reported at the time.

Newly-released dash cam video shows deputies pulling Dyksma out of his truck and to the ground. He is cuffed, and the video shows a deputy put his knee on the back of Dyksma’s neck. When deputies later realize he is unresponsive, they try to revive him.

The autopsy attributes the cause of death to use of the stun gun, compression of the neck and torso, and methamphetamine intoxication.

“The real concern, of course, is what they did when they pulled him out of the car,” said attorney Craig Jones, who is representing Dyksma’s parents in a lawsuit against the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.

Dyksma already was immobilized by the Taser and handcuffed, so there was no need to further pin him down, Jones told The Telegraph Friday.

Dyksma’s mother had not watched the video herself but wanted other people to see it, Jones said.

“She wants other young people like her son to know that bad things can happen whether it’s legal or not, and we want the public to know there are cops out there — some of them are good cops who make mistakes and some are bad apples,” he said.