The family of Daniel Prude, a Black man who suffocated during a March incident in Rochester, New York, called for charges against the police officers who had covered his head with a hood and pressed his face into the ground. Body-camera footage released by Prude's family on Wednesday sparked protests outside Rochester's police headquarters, the Associated Press reported. The incident has been under investigation by state Attorney General Letitia James's office since April.
Prude's death happened two months before George Floyd died while in Minneapolis police custody, sparking national protests and debates over law enforcement and racial injustice. The Rochester incident received little media attention until video of the incident was released this week.
Criminal justice is a central issue of the presidential campaign. President Donald Trump has tried to portray himself as the "law and order" candidate, calling for Democratic mayors to get control of their cities. Trump on Tuesday visited Kenosha, Wisconsin, which was engulfed by protests after a Black man was shot multiple times in the back by a White police officer on Aug. 23. During his visit, Trump lauded police and National Guard members.
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden plans to visit Kenosha Thursday to hold a community meeting "to bring together Americans to heal and address the challenges we face," according to the campaign.
A Fox News poll released Wednesday found that likely voters in the swing state preferred Biden's handling of policing and criminal justice issues over Trump's by 5 percentage points.
The same poll found Biden leading Trump by the same margin in Arizona, another electoral battleground, while the president edged out Biden by 1 point on the issue among North Carolina voters. The poll was taken from Sunday through Tuesday.
