Dinwiddie drops charges against two of 10 suspects in Irvo Otieno death case
DINWIDDIE – Murder charges have been dropped against two of the 10 suspects in the March 6 death of a Henrico County man while in custody at Central State Hospital.
Dinwiddie County Commonwealth’s Attorney Ann Cabell Baskervill said in an email Tuesday to The Progress-Index that she decided to withdraw second-degree murder charges against Darian M. Blackwell, 23, of Petersburg, and Sadarius Williams, 27, of Dinwiddie. These two men were employed as security personnel at CSH when 28-year-old Irvo Otieno died.
Baskervill said similar charges against the eight other suspects — a third CSH employee and seven deputies with the Henrico County Sheriff’s Department — remain in place.
Otieno, who suffered from mental-health issues, died at Central State as the deputies were bringing him there for observation. A video of the processing unit where they were showed the deputies and others pinning an apparently incoherent Otieno to the floor and lying across him after they claimed he became belligerent and tried to escape.
Baskervill made headlines when she used the video to directly file second-degree murder charges against all parties involved — deputies Jermaine Lavar Branch, 45; Bradley Thomas Disse, 43; Randy Joseph Boyer, 57; Dwayne Alan Bramble, 37; Tabitha Rene Levere, 50; Brandon Edward Rodgers, 48; and Kaiyell Dajour Sanders, 30; and hospital employee Wavie L. Jones, 34, of Chesterfield.
In dropping the charges against the two CSH employees, Baskervill said she did so because Blackwell and Williams were not as involved in Otieno’s death as the others
“I certainly do find that Mr. Williams and Mr. Blackwell do not have the level of culpability that would be appropriate for moving forward with trial,” Baskervill said in the email. “Much of this is visible on the videos and considering the back story.”
Baskervill, who is stepping down as Dinwiddie prosecutor this month to study in Europe, said she thinks dropping those charges will strengthen the commonwealth’s case in the future. An interim prosecutor for the county has not yet been selected.
“The decision to withdraw the charges was heavy but it was not difficult,” she said in the email. “I believe this places the prosecution of Irvo Otieno’s homicide in the strongest possible position upon my departure. There is no doubt in my mind that the Commonwealth is now in a position to win when this ultimately goes to trial, and that truth, transparency, and justice will prevail.”
Baskervill said she does not expect her successor to withdraw any more charges in the case. “I would be very disappointed and shocked if that were to happen,” she added.
Mark Krudys, one of the attorneys for the Otieno family, declined to comment on Baskervill's decision. The family is also being represented by civil-rights attorney Benjamin Crump.
Otieno’s family has requested that the U.S. Justice Department step in and help with the case. Baskervill said she asked the feds for assistance but has not yet heard their response.
“I think at this point we have to assume it will stay in Dinwiddie courts,” she said.
Baskervill, who was not planning to run for re-election this November, is leaving Dinwiddie to pursue a graduate degree in governance and diplomacy in Europe. She said she accepted the offer from L’Institut des Études Politiques in Paris on March 4, two days before Otieno’s death. Her departure, she said, has nothing to do with the Otieno case.
Her last day on the Dinwiddie job is Wednesday, June 21.
Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on Twitter at @BAtkinson_PI.
This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Dinwiddie drops charges against two of 10 suspects in Otieno death
