Carotid holds, police use-of-force procedure and a selfie mocking Elijah McClain’s death were discussed Friday in a motions hearing which offered a sneak preview into one of three upcoming trials in the high-profile case.

Aurora police officer Nathan Woodyard was in the courtroom for the five-hour motions hearing dressed in civilian clothes. He was placed on non-enforcement duties in June 2021. 

Trial pushed back for two Aurora police officers accused in Elijah McClain’s death

Prosecutors with the Colorado Attorney General’s office, Woodyard’s attorneys and 17th Judicial District Judge Mark Warner also discussed how best to pare down the number of prospective jurors with a questionnaire, since Adams County’s jury assembly room can only hold 500 people. Jury selection is scheduled to start Monday, Oct. 16.

Woodyard’s attorneys argued that though he was the first on the scene, he became emotionally distraught as McClain was held down by the other two officers. They also pointed out that Woodyard never opened – and actually deleted – a selfie sent by three other Aurora officers mocking McClain’s death two months after the incident. 

Judge Warner countered that it would require “a great deal of speculation” for the jury to be sure whether what Woodyard’s behavior meant in relation to his role in McClain’s death.

First trial for officers in Elijah McClain’s death now set for September

Woodyard, who was on the Aurora force for nearly three years, is being tried separately from former Aurora police officers Randy Roedema and Jason Rosenblatt, whose joint trial begins Sept. 18. Their trial was pushed back from its original July date after their attorneys argued they needed more time to review the approximately 40,000 pages of evidence produced by prosecutors.

Paramedics Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec are currently scheduled for a pre-trial conference Nov. 2.

The three trials are each expected to take three weeks. 

During Friday’s hearing in Woodyard’s case, attorneys revealed that the prosecution intends to call dozens of expert witnesses including at least one person who will discuss police use of force policies, a toxicology expert from NMS Labs, and the Denver police officer who trained the Aurora police and testified in the grand jury. 

Gov. Jared Polis ordered Attorney General Phil Weiser to open a criminal investigation into the case and a statewide grand jury indicted two paramedics and three officers in September 2021 in McClain’s death.  

McClain, 23, died in a hospital in 2019 days after he went into cardiac arrest following an encounter when the three police officers forcibly restrained him on Aug. 24, put him in a control neck hold and a paramedic called to the scene injected him with the sedative ketamine.

Aurora Police officers had responded to a call reporting a person wearing a mask who looked “sketchy” as McClain walked home from a convenience store after buying iced tea, but he was not suspected of any crime. He wore a ski mask to keep warm because of anemia, according to relatives.

The five face 32 counts altogether, including criminally negligent homicide, manslaughter and second-degree assault causing serious bodily injury. Cooper and Cichuniec also face a count each of second-degree assault with a deadly weapon – ketamine – and unlawfully administering the sedative without consent.

They have each pleaded not guilty.

An autopsy report by Dr. Stephen Cina originally characterized McClain’s cause and manner of death undetermined. But an amended autopsy report, released last year after a group of news organizations sued the Adams County coroner for its disclosure, concluded McClain would have most likely survived if not for the administration of ketamine. It was determined to be too high for his body weight. However, Cina still found his manner of death undetermined, not a homicide.

Cina’s amended report adds he saw “no evidence that injuries inflicted by police contributed to death” because McClain was conscious, able to speak and responsive following the neck hold and removal of the officers’ body weight from him.

Attorneys request trial delay for two Aurora officers charged in Elijah McClain’s death

In court Friday, Woodyard’s attorney, Andrew Ho, said “quite frankly, we don’t know the cause of death” and noted it’s also unknown whether Woodyard’s actions caused it. Earlier he argued for jurors to be instructed in the difference between a choke hold and a carotid hold. “There’s not a shred of evidence that officers used a choke hold” on McClain,” said Ho.

Prosecutor Jason Slothouber countered that a state grand jury and a judge found that there was probable cause to take the five defendants to trial. 

McClain’s mother, Sheneen McClain watched Woodyard’s hearing virtually. 

This story has been corrected to clarify the fact Nathan Woodyard, who is still an Aurora police officer, was present for Friday’s hearing. 

Denver Gazette reporter Julia Cardi contributed information for this report.