Similar to the ancient capital punishment of crucifixion, Elliot Earl Williams needed no cross on which to be hung. He was a paralyzed. His alleged crime was minor. He was sick. And he was left naked in a cell for days where he couldn’t move, eat, or drink. He was mocked and he was physically tortured through the deprivation of basic human needs, which led to his slow horrific death. Kate Briquelet with the Daily Beast extensively reported on the story.

Elliot Williams, a 37-year-old black man, was an Army veteran with a history of mental illness. He was arrested at an Oklahoma Marriott hotel on Oct. 21, 2011. The hotel staff said Mr. Williams appeared to be having a mental breakdown when they called the police. Upset over a breakup with his spouse, Mr. Williams told the officers to shoot him. Eventually he was pepper-sprayed and carried of to jail. He needed immediate mental healthcare. That was evident by his actions at the hotel, then while being booked, and from videotapes of him in a cell. Only later Elliot Williams was pronounced dead.

A lawsuit was filed by the family of Mr. Williams. Below is a summary. Much of it needs no explaining, as most of this human atrocity can be seen on the video that was taped via a cell-monitoring camera. Briquette writes about the claim:

They said he was “acting li ke he was paralyzed and he kept saying he wanted water.”

On Saturday, October 22, 2011, Elliot Williams suffered a spinal injury while in the custody of the Tulsa Sheriff Office (TCSO). It’s not clear how it happened. A day later, TCSO Officers say they found Mr. Williams on his back saying “he couldn’t move.” They didn’t believe him even after he tried to show them he couldn’t even reach a cup of water to drink. The Tulsa Country Jail report claimed Mr. Williams would lie on the bed and not respond to questions. They said he was “acting like he was paralyzed and he kept saying he wanted water.” (I have to stop to breathe every time I reread that last sentence.)

Elliot Williams was paralyzed and dragged into a cell where he was left untreated for days.

Finally, after several days of pleading for help and saying he was unable to move, the staff dragged Mr. Williams, across the floor, naked, into a medical cell where they could monitor him for faking. He was left untreated. The video shows that Elliot Williams’ injuries were so bad he could not even reach and hold a cup of water that was placed slightly out of reach. The staff would toss/throw covered trays of food towards , “like he was an animal” which he could not move to grasp, much less open. Some trays were completely out of his reach. There he was left for days with no assistance, unable to eat or drink.

Elliot Williams’ reportedly last drink was a drop of water that came from his wet finger after he managed to dip it into the cup of water and bring the drop to his mouth. When staff came in the next day, they found him unresponsive. They then yanked the blanket from under his body as his body rolled and tumbled on the bare floor. The efforts to revive him were futile. Here a video from Tulsa World with footage of Mr. Elliot lying on the floor trying to reach water as he was dying. It’s graphic, it’s heartbreaking, and it’s enraging.