Shocking new video obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com is shining new light on the death of Keenan Anderson – the cousin of BLM Founder Patrisse Cullors – after he was tasered six times by los Angeles cops.
And it adds new perspective to an extended version of police bodycam footage that was released just hours earlier.
The new never-before-seen clip of the scuffle is from a bystander’s point-of-view clearly showing the 31-year-old teacher struggling while officers pile on top of him.
Anderson went into cardiac arrest and died on January 3 after being tasered six times in 42 seconds by cops who claimed he was ‘behaving erratically’ and trying to flee the scene of a traffic accident.
But the two disturbing videos show him asking for help and claiming the cops were going to ‘George Floyd’ him – a reference to the death of the black Minneapolis man at the hands of police.
Teacher Keenan Anderson, cousin of BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors, died on January 3 after being tasered by Los Angeles police officers
New video of the incident obtained by DailyMail.com shows four officers restraining Anderson as he struggles on the ground
Eyewitness Molly Anderson said she saw the tragic incident unfold while at Deus Café. Video from a different angle giving a new perspective of the incident was obtained by DailyMail.com
‘Rather than deescalate the situation, the police officer made things worse. He had one hand on his gun the entire time and did nothing to calm this man down,’ the eyewitness said
The family are now planning to sue the LAPD for $50 million for wrongful death.
Anderson was apprehended at the junction of Venice Boulevard and Lincoln Boulevard in Los Angeles at 3:35 pm pm January 3. Police say he was involved in a hit-and-run accident and he tried to get into Uber, whose driver claimed he was trying to steal his car.
The LAPD says a preliminary toxicology report showed he had cocaine and cannabis in his system at the time of his death.
An eyewitness to the events, Molly Anderson, told DailyMail.com she saw the tragic incident unfold while at Deus Café.
Mashea Ashton, the founder and CEO of the charter school where Anderson taught English, told DailyMail.com he was a ‘mentor’ to his students
‘It was obvious to everyone watching that this man was having some sort of mental health crisis, Anderson, who is no relation to the dead man, said.
‘He was scared and was saying that someone was trying to kill him. He didn’t make sense which was the first indication that he was not in his right mind.
‘Rather than deescalate the situation, the police officer made things worse. He had one hand on his gun the entire time and did nothing to calm this man down.
‘This man was not armed, he was not violent and he did not deserve to die. I watched in horror as multiple cops toppled on him.
‘All of these police officers and one unarmed man and they couldn’t manage to deescalate the situation.
‘Look at the video, by now he has been tasered multiple times and he is no longer resisting. He even says he is not resisting, but the cop tasers him again.’
Those who knew Anderson called him a ‘mentor’ to his 10th grade students who are now mourning the death of their beloved English teacher.
Anderson, who taught at the Digital Pioneers Academy in Washington, DC, was visiting Los Angeles at the time of his death.
‘We are really sad and we are really angry,’ Mashea Ashton, the founder and CEO of the Washington DC charter school where Anderson taught English, told DailyMail.com.
‘If a student didn’t have shoes, clothes or food to eat, Keenan made sure to take care of them. He would actually buy them a new pair of shoes, make sure they were fed,’ she said.
Mashea Ashton, the founder and CEO Digital Pioneers Academy, told DailyMail.com. ‘Keenan was a mentor to his kids and didn’t deserve to die.’ Anderson is pictured helping his 10th grade English students
Antoine Manning, 14, (left) a student at Digital Pioneers Academy who was shot and killed on October 31. Jahki Snider, 15, a 10th grade student who was shot and killed weeks later
Anderson taught at the Digital Pioneers Academy in Washington, DC, and was visiting Los Angeles at the time of his death
‘If a student didn’t have shoes, clothes or food to eat, Keenan made sure to take care of them,’ Ashton added. Anderson is pictured with fellow teachers at Digital Pioneers Academy in Washington D.C. Keenan was a favorite among his English students
‘Keenan was a mentor to his kids and didn’t deserve to die. Many of our scholars experience lots of trauma, death, violence, and now they are trying to make sense of what happened to their teacher.
‘He sent me a text saying that he would be back at school on January 4,’ Ashton explained. ‘There was nothing unusual in his text. Keenan was always responsible and one of our most loved teachers.
Ashton said she is wondering why the situation could not have been deescalated by police.
She said his death is added trauma for his students who have had two classmates killed by gun violence in the last few months.
One of the students, Jakhi Snider, 15, was in Anderson’s English class and was killed during Thanksgiving break. This came just weeks after Antoine Manning, 14, was gunned down on October 31.
No one has been arrested in either case.
‘In fact, before Keenan left for winter break he was helping his students grieve the death of a fellow scholar who was killed during Thanksgiving break,’ said Ashton. ‘Keenan was grieving himself. He was close with Jakhi and his death was tragic for everyone, especially for Keenan who was his English teacher.’
Ashton had hired Anderson six months ago and said he quickly became a favorite among the students.
Anderson’s family is now suing the city of Los Angeles for $50million for his death. Their attorney Carl Douglas said the city failed to properly train the officers who used unreasonable deadly force.
‘If you taser someone with 50,000 watts of electrical energy six times … is there really any wonder that moments later his heart will begin to flutter?’ Douglas asked at a news conference.
‘Is there any wonder why four hours later his heart could no longer withstand the pressure from that taser and gave up?’
Officers could be heard warning Anderson that he would be tasered if he did not physically comply with their instructions to turn over
Anderson could be heard crying out on police bodycam, ‘Please, help me please’
Civil rights lawyer Benjamin Crump, who is also representing the family, said people can only wonder what Anderson meant by saying the cops were trying to ‘George Floyd’ him.
‘But if he meant that he would end up dead at the end of the encounter at the hands of the Los Angeles Police Department then Keenan Anderson was correct. They did George Floyd him.’
The LAPD have classified Anderson’s death as ‘in-custody’ and said its Force Investigation Division will conduct an investigation.
A traffic officer saw Anderson ‘running in the middle of the street and exhibiting erratic behavior,’ as those involved ‘motioned’ to the officer that he had been responsible for a crash.
Initially Anderson cooperated with the traffic officer, who then ‘requested additional units for a DUI investigation.’
As additional officers arrived at the scene Anderson allegedly tried to escape being brought into custody by running in the middle of Venice Boulevard.
‘Officers struggled with Anderson for several minutes, utilizing a TASER, bodyweight, firm grips, and joint locks to overcome his resistance. Anderson was subsequently handcuffed and hobbled at the ankles,’ the LAPD said in a statement.
After he was arrested the Los Angeles Fire Department ‘rendered medical aid for deployment of the TASER.’
He was then taken to a hospital in Santa Monica where he died.
The new body camera footage of Anderson reveals he may have been suffering from a concussion, which could have explained his behavior.
Initial reports blamed Anderson’s incoherent words and erratic behavior on drugs, however Cullors maintains the police ignored her cousin’s requests for help.
‘LAPD released more footage of my cousin…he knew he needed help. He said he thought he had a concussion. Instead of LAPD calling the ambulance, they questioned my cousin. They criminalized him. Then they killed him,’ Cullors wrote on her Instagram on January 23.
Patrisse Cullors, far left, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement, listens as Gabrielle Hansell, mother of five-year-old Syncere Kai Anderson, far right, announced a lawsuit
Anderson’s family is now suing the city of Los Angeles for $50 million for his death. Their attorney Carl Douglas (right) said the city failed to properly train the officers who used unreasonable deadly force. Fellow attorney Benjamin Crump is at left
In a tribute post on Instagram, BLM founder Patrisse Cullors revealed that Anderson was her cousin and posted a photo of him with his five-year-old son
School CEO Ashton said Anderson had never exhibited any unusual behavior, including drug use.
Preliminary toxicology tests found traces of cannabinoids and cocaine metabolite, meaning the drug could have been inactive. According to the American Addictive Centers, after its last use, cocaine or its metabolites can show up on a blood test for up to two days.
In a tribute post on Instagram, BLM founder Cullors revealed that Anderson was her cousin and posted a photo of him with his five-year-old son.
‘This is my cousin Keenan Anderson. He was killed by LAPD in Venice on January 3rd, 2023,’ she wrote.
‘My cousin was an educator and worked with high school aged children. He was an English teacher,’ she added.
‘Keenan deserves to be alive right now, his child deserves to be raised by his father. Keenan we will fight for you and for all of our loved ones impacted by state violence.
‘LAPD has killed three people this year. One of them is my family member.’