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Lawyer Ben Crump: Evidence Shows Former NFL OL Glenn Foster Was Choked Before He Died

Rob Goldberg@@TheRobGoldbergFeatured Columnist IVDecember 17, 2021

FOXBORO, MA - OCTOBER 13:  Defensive end Glenn Foster #97 of the New Orleans Saints takes the field before the start of the Saints and New England Patriots game at Gillette Stadium on October 13, 2013 in Foxboro, Massachusetts.  (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
Rob Carr/Getty Images

An independent autopsy on Glenn Foster Jr. indicates the former NFL player did not die of natural causes while in police custody earlier this month, attorney Ben Crump said in a statement Friday:

Ben Crump Law, PLLC @BenCrumpLaw

NEWS ALERT: <a href="https://twitter.com/AttorneyCrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AttorneyCrump</a> and co-counsel Diandra “Fu” Debrosse Zimmermann and Robert F. “Bobby” DiCello have released a statement on the preliminary findings of the independent autopsy of Glenn Foster Jr. <a href="https://t.co/ezay4XHign">pic.twitter.com/ezay4XHign</a>

Per the statement, the independent autopsy suggested there was some evidence of neck compressions and strangulation.

Foster was booked at Pickens County (Alabama) jail on Dec. 4 and charged with reckless endangerment, resisting arrest and attempting to elude police, per Mike A. Perlstein and Ramon Antonio Vargas of NOLA.com. He was then rebooked at the jail on Dec. 5 on charges of simple assault and robbery. He died the next day while still in custody.

The Pickens County Sheriff’s Office later said that Foster died at a medical facility, while his family said it feared officials delayed potential life-saving care, per Perlstein and Vargas.

"We want justice for our son," said Foster’s father, Glenn Foster Sr. "It's unfair. It's inhumane. It's just not right."

Crump's statement said he was found unresponsive in the back of a police car before arriving at the medical facility.

According to Crump, this is part of an ongoing trend for this office:

"As we continue to investigate the case, we are learning that Mr. Foster's death in Pickens County appears to be part of a disturbing trend of Black men dying while in the custody of the Pickens County Sheriff's Office. Keeping people in your custody alive is literally the lowest bar we can set for a law enforcement agency and is something that the Pickens County Sheriff's Office failed to do."

Foster spent two seasons in the NFL with the New Orleans Saints, tallying three sacks across 17 games. He worked as a contractor, developer and real estate agent following his playing career.