BATON ROUGE, La. — A legislative committee is continuing meetings surrounding the 2019 death of Ronald Greene.
Greene‘s death caught national attention after body camera footage was later released. In May 2019, Greene lead troopers on a high-speed chase before crashing his car in Union Parish. Troopers initially said he died in that car crash but months after the incident, body camera video released showed troopers beating, teasing, and forcing Greene on his stomach before he died.
A revised autopsy report connects Greene‘s death to a list of things including, troopers hitting the 49-year-old in the head, restraining him for a long period of time, and his use of cocaine. However, that report stopped short of classifying his death as a homicide.
The committee is tasked with listening to witness testimony and drafting a series of recommendations then sharing its findings into how State Police handled the investigation. Col. Lamar Davis, the acting superintendent for the State Police, said he has already implemented changes following this incident.
Davis said the investigative and internal affairs division now reports directly to the superintendent, which previously was not the case. Ongoing de-escalation training and implicit bias workshops have also been added for troopers.
Friday a grand jury is also meeting in Union parish. They will begin hearing evidence and decide if anyone will face charges in Greene‘s death.
Union Parish District Attorney John Belton has yet to release any details into which troopers or sheriff's deputies could be facing charges. He’s also not released any information with regard to the charges he is pursuing. Belton has said in previous statements that he is considering all charges, including obstruction of justice.
Amid the grand jury proceedings and the legislative committee meeting, federal authorities are also investigating the circumstances surrounding Ronald Greene‘s death but have not made any arrests as of yet.