Opening statements begin in suspended Officer Nathan Woodyard's trial related to Elijah McClain

Nathan Woodyard was the first Aurora police officer to respond to a call of a suspicious person the night of Aug. 24, 2019. Now he's on trial, charged with manslaughter and negligent homicide in the death of Elijah McClain, the unarmed Black 23-year-old, whose death made national headlines.

Opening statements in Woodyard's trial began Tuesday. Last week, an Adams County Jury reached a split verdict in the first trial of two other officers, finding Randy Roedema guilty of criminally negligent homicide and third-degree assault.

Jason Rosenblatt was found not guilty of manslaughter and assault.

Ann Joyce, Assistant Attorney General in the Colorado Department of Law, went first with opening statements Tuesday. 

She told the jury that Woodyard stopped McClain and applied the carotid hold to him. The officer had been trained on the technique 10 days earlier. It has since been banned for police in Colorado.

McClain then vomited and said "I can't breathe," several times. The prosecutor said Woodyard didn't follow his training by not checking McClain's vital signs.

She said Woodyard is guilty of reckless manslaughter.

Defense attorney Megan Downing told the jury that McClain's death was caused by too high a dose of ketamine, causing McClain's heart to stop beating.

She said Woodyard had nothing to do with the decision made by medical personnel. She added that prosecutors charged Woodyard with killing McClain, but rejected that notion.

Peter Cichuniec and Jeremy Cooper, the paramedics charged in connection with McClain's death, are scheduled to go on trial next month.