Tyler family seeks independent review after Prattville police encounter death

Jermaine Tyler’s family is pressing Alabama officials to step in after the Prattville man died following a police encounter in Autauga County, saying the public still does not have a clear enough account of what happened on Fairview Avenue and Diane Drive. Their lawyers are asking for body-camera footage, records, transparency and an independent state investigation, arguing that only outside oversight can restore confidence in the findings.

Prattville police said officers were dispatched around 6:30 p.m. on May 19 after several people reported a man who appeared intoxicated, was walking in and out of traffic and was waving his arms. Police said officers made contact with Tyler, “secured” him because of what they described as erratic behavior, and requested medical help. Tyler then suffered a cardiac event while medics were evaluating him, was taken to Prattville Baptist Hospital and later died. The department said the Elmore County Sheriff’s Office is handling the investigation and that it will not release additional details while the case remains active.

The family’s attorneys are challenging the way the encounter has been described, saying the word “secured” leaves out crucial facts. They want answers about whether Tyler was armed, whether he resisted, and what level of force, if any, was used. They also said they are looking into whether a Taser was involved, but have not been given the records they asked for because they were told the matter remains under investigation.

Tyler’s family says he had been working that day as a brick mason for Long Willow Masonry in Bessemer. According to their account, Tyler and coworkers were headed back toward Montgomery when he said he felt overheated and had trouble breathing. The group reportedly got off I-65 in Prattville, where Tyler got out of the vehicle and appeared to be seeking help.

An independent review would move the case beyond local control in a state where the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency’s State Bureau of Investigation says it can investigate officer-involved shootings when requested by law enforcement agencies. In comparable Alabama cases, state investigators have stepped in at the local agency’s request and later passed findings to the district attorney’s office. Alabama also has a death-in-custody reporting framework that requires certain custody deaths to be reported to the state, but public release of those records is left to individual agencies.

The stakes are high in Prattville, where the police department lists 100 sworn officers, six full-time employees and 19 part-time support staff. The city’s public records page says Prattville recognizes and supports the public’s right to inspect and request copies of records under state law, a point now at the center of the family’s demand for answers after Tyler’s death.